Dr. Aaron K. Christian serves as a Senior Research Fellow at the Regional Institute for Population Studies. He began his research career in the Department of Nutrition and Food Science at the University of Ghana, where he earned both his bachelor's and master's degrees in nutrition before pursuing a PhD in Population Studies. Over the past decade, Dr. Christian has participated in various multidisciplinary research teams focused on conceptualizing, designing, and implementing field-based health and nutrition interventions.

He has held visiting scholar positions at institutions at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (2013) and the University of Michigan (2016-2017). In 2014, Dr. Christian was recognized as one of the "Young and Emerging African Nutrition Researchers" by the African Nutrition Matters Newsletter. He is a past fellow of the Queen Elizabeth Scholars program, a postdoctoral fellowship collaboration between the University of Ghana, Legon and McGill University, Quebec, Montreal. Additionally, he is an alumnus of the IMMANA Fellowship program, where he broadened his research interests to focus on women's empowerment and its effects on health and nutrition outcomes.

Dr. Christian's research primarily examines how social, cultural, biological, and environmental factors interact to affect population health, with a specific focus on maternal and child nutrition and non-communicable diseases. He has led and collaborated with various local and international teams investigating the social determinants of population health and implementing nutrition and health interventions, particularly among women, children and vulnerable populations. Currently, he is the lead nutrition scientist on the Standards for Official Statistics on Climate-Health Interactions, UK project.

Dr. Aaron Kobina Christian

Population Health and Environment

2023 to Date

  1. Christian, A.K., Osei-Appaw, A.A., Sawyerr, R.T. and Wiredu Agyekum, M., 2024. Hypertension, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease nexus: investigating the role of urbanization and lifestyle in Cabo Verde. Global Health Action, 17(1), p.2414524
  2. Okyere, M.A., Christian, A.K., Essel-Gaisey, F. and Zuka, F.M., 2024. Energy and vulnerability: Exploring the energy poverty-risky sexual behavior nexus among young women in Ghana. SSM-Population Health, p.101597
  3. Christian, A.K., Afful-Dadzie, E. and Marquis, G.S., 2023. Infant and young child feeding practices are associated with childhood anaemia and stunting in sub-Saharan Africa. BMC nutrition, 9(1), p.9.
  4. Christian, A.K., Atiglo, D.Y., Okyere, M.A., Obeng‐Dwamena, A., Marquis, G.S. and Jones, A.D., 2023. Women's empowerment, children's nutritional status, and the mediating role of household headship structure: Evidence from sub‐Saharan Africa. Maternal & Child Nutrition, p.e13520.
  5. Dake, F. A., & Christian, A. K. (2023). Cold, dark and malnourished: a cross-sectional analysis of the relationship between energy poverty and household burden of malnutrition in sub-Saharan Africa. BMJ open, 13(12), e074601.
  6. Nyantakyi-Frimpong, H., Christian, A.K., Ganle, J. and Aryeetey, R., 2023. “Now we’ve all turned to eating processed foods”: a photovoice study of the food and nutrition security implications of ‘galamsey’in Ghana. African Journal of Food, Agriculture, Nutrition and Development, 23(1), pp.22200-22220.
  7. Okyere, M.A., Essel-Gaisey, F., Zuka, F.M., Christian, A.K. and Nunoo, I.K., 2023. Wading out the storm: Exploring the effect of flooding on energy poverty amidst disaster management strategies in Dar es Salaam. Environmental Science & Policy, 150, p.103578.
  8. Klu, D., Atiglo, D.Y. and Christian, A.K., 2023. Multinomial logistic regression analysis of the determinants of anaemia severity among children aged 6–59 months in Ghana: new evidence from the 2019 Malaria Indicator Survey. BMC pediatrics, 23(1), pp.1-13.

  9. Yeboah, I., Agyekum, M. W., Okyere, J., Mensah, R. O., Essiaw, M. N., Appiah, H., ... & Christian, A. K. (2023). Use of any contraceptive method among women in rural communities in the eastern region of Ghana: a cross-sectional study. BMC Public Health, 23(1), 1925.

    2020- 2022

  10. Christian, A.K. and Dake, F.A., 2022. Profiling household double and triple burden of malnutrition in sub-Saharan Africa: Prevalence and influencing household factors. Public Health Nutrition, 25(6), pp.1563-1576.
  11. Christian, A.K., Steiner-Asiedu, M., Bentil, H.J., Rohner, F., Wegmüller, R., Petry, N., Wirth, J.P., Donkor, W.E., Amoaful, E.F. and Adu-Afarwuah, S., 2022. Co-Occurrence of Overweight/Obesity, Anemia and Micronutrient Deficiencies among Non-Pregnant Women of Reproductive Age in Ghana: Results from a Nationally Representative Survey. Nutrients, 14(7), p.1427.
  12. Christian, A.K., Dovie, B.D., Akpalu, W. and Codjoe, S.N.A., 2021. Households' socio-demographic characteristics, perceived and underestimated vulnerability to floods and related risk reduction in Ghana. Urban Climate, 35, p.100759.
  13. Christian, A.K., Sanuade, O.A., Kushitor, S.B., Kushitor, M., Kretchy, I., Agyemang, C. and de-Graft Aikins, A., 2021. Metabolic syndrome among individuals living with hypertension in Accra, Ghana. Plos one, 16(10), p.e0253837.
  14. Christian, A.K., Biney, A.A., Atiglo, D.Y., Dodoo, N.D., Obeng-Dwamena, A.D., Owoo, N.S. and Dodoo, F., 2021. Being overweight and its association with risky sexual behaviour among female youth in Ghana. SN Social Sciences, 1(3), pp.1-15.
  15. Christian, A. K., & Akpalu, W. (2021). The effect of adaptive capacity to malaria on subjective welfare in Ghana. Environmental and Sustainability Indicators, 9, 100097.
  16. Christian, A. K., Agula, C., & Jayson-Quashigah, P. N. (2020). Correlates and spatial distribution of the co-occurrence of childhood anaemia and stunting in Ghana. SSM-Population Health, 12, 100683.
  17. Christian, A. K., Sanuade, O. A., Okyere, M. A., & Adjaye-Gbewonyo, K. (2020). Social capital is associated with improved subjective well-being of older adults with chronic non-communicable disease in six low-and middle-income countries. Globalization and Health, 16, 1-11
  18. Christian, A. K., & Frempong, G. A. (2020). Correlates of over-or under-estimation of body size among resource-poor urban dwellers in a sub-Saharan African city. Annals of Human Biology, 47(7-8), 602-609
  19. Osei-Appaw, A. and Christian, A., 2022. The Demographic Dividend As A Pathway To Development: The Role of Fertility and Education in Sub-Saharan Africa. A Narrative Review. International Journal of Economics, 7(1), pp.76-90.
  20. Colecraft, E. K., Shittu, O. O., Christian, A., Akerele, D., Otoo, G. E., & Otoo, E. (2020). Nutrition Transition and the Triple Burden of Malnutrition in Sub-Saharan Africa: Status, Determinants and Economic Welfare Costs. Agriculture and Food Policies for Better Nutrition Outcomes in Africa, 43
  21. Atiglo, D.Y., Christian, A.K., Okyere, M.A. and Codjoe, S.N., 2022. Rural out-migration from Ghana’s development zones and household food security. Migration and Development, 11(3), pp.469-483.
  22. Dovie, D.B., Miyittah, M.K., Dodor, D.E., Dzodzomenyo, M., Christian, A.K., Tete‐Larbi, R., Codjoe, S.N. and Bawah, A.A., 2022. Earth System's Gatekeeping of “One Health” Approach to Manage Climate‐Sensitive Infectious Diseases. GeoHealth, 6(4), p.e2021GH000543.
  23. Colecraft, E.K., Christian, A.K., Ammah, G. and Aryeetey, R., 2022. Rapid review of research on dietary attitudes, beliefs and practices in Ghana 1990-2020. African Journal of Food, Agriculture, Nutrition and Development, 22(2), pp.19417-19440.
  24. Dovie, D.B., Miyittah, M.K., Dodor, D.E., Dzodzomenyo, M., Christian, A.K., Tete‐Larbi, R., Codjoe, S.N. and Bawah, A.A., 2022. Earth System's Gatekeeping of “One Health” Approach to Manage Climate‐Sensitive Infectious Diseases. GeoHealth, 6(4), p.e2021GH000543.
  25. Armo-Annor, D., Colecraft, E.K., Adu-Afarwuah, S., Christian, A.K. and Jones, A.D., 2021. Risk of anaemia among women engaged in biomass-based fish smoking as their primary livelihood in the central region of Ghana: a comparative cross-sectional study. BMC nutrition, 7(1), pp.1-11.

  26. Sanuade, O. A., Baatiema, L., Christian, A. K., & Puplampu, P. (2021). Cardiovascular risk factors among patients with human immunodeficiency viral infection at a tertiary hospital in Ghana: a cross-sectional study. Pan African Medical Journal, 38(1).

    2012- 2019

  27. Christian AK, Marquis GS, Colecraft EK, Lartey A, Soueida R.  Household food insecurity but not dietary diversity is associated with children’s mean micronutrient density adequacy in rural communities across Ghana. Nutrition. 2019;65:97-102. doi: 10.1016/j.nut.2019.03.006.
  28. Christian, A. K., Marquis, G. S., Colecraft, E. K., Lartey, A., Sakyi-Dawson, O., Ahunu, B. K., & Butler, L. M. (2016). Caregivers’ nutrition knowledge and attitudes are associated with household food diversity and children’s animal source food intake across different agro-ecological zones in Ghana. British Journal of Nutrition, 115(02), 351-360.
  29. Christian, A. K., Wilson, M. L., Aryeetey, R. N., & Jones, A. D. (2019). Livestock ownership, household food security and childhood anaemia in rural Ghana. PLoS One, 14(7), e0219310.
  30. Christian, AK, A Lartey, E Colecraft, GS Marquis, O Sakyi-Dawson, BK Ahunu The relationship between caregivers’ income generation activities and children’s animal source food intake. African Journal of Food, Agriculture, Nutrition and Development. Volume 12, Number 1, February 2012.
  31. Christian, A., Addo, I. A., & Codjoe, S. N. A. (2019). Selecting climate change adaptation options: a case study of an urban coastal community in accra, ghana. Climate Change in Ghana, 95.
  32. Colecraft, E.K., Asante, M., Christian, A.K. and Adu-Afarwuah, S., 2018. Sociodemographic Characteristics, Dietary Practices, and Nutritional Status of Adults with Hypertension in a Semi-Rural Community in the Eastern Region of Ghana. International journal of hypertension, 2018.
  33. Akpalu, W., Christian, A. K., & Codjoe, S. N. A. (2018). Food access and subjective welfare in a developing country. Journal of behavioral and experimental economics, 73, 34-39.
  34. Sterk, B., Christian, A. K., Gogan, A. C., Sakyi-Dawson, O., & Kossou, D. (2013). Five years after; the impact of a participatory technology development programme as perceived by smallholder farmers in Benin and Ghana. The journal of agricultural education and extension, 19(4), 361-379

(Selected, Past 5 years)

  • Research Scientist    2023 to Date

     Climate and Health Welcome Project working Group, RIPS, University of Ghana, Legon                                                                                                                                                             

  • Project Manager      2019     

    The “invisible fishers”: Empowering and safeguarding women in fisheries values chains in Ghana to reduce anemia. Collaborating institutions: University of Michigan, University of Ghana, Viamo, Innovations for Poverty Action, Netherlands Development Organization

Masters: 
Gender and Reproductive Health (POPS614)
Population, Urbanization And Development (POPS625)    
Advanced Quantitative Analysis (POPS 608

PhD:
Advanced Quantitative Research Methods (POPS 704)
 

Staff Category
Faculty