Leeds at the WHO: Holly Rippin

Leeds graduate Holly Rippin is a Public Health Nutritionist. She works at the World Health Organization (WHO) as a Consultant in the European Office for Prevention and Control of Noncommunicable Diseases. 

Dr Holly Rippin graduated from Leeds with a PhD in Nutritional Epidemiology in 2019. Holly shares her insight on the work of the World Health Organization on fighting chronic disease. 

What are noncommunicable diseases? 

Noncommunicable Diseases (NCDs), also known as chronic diseases, are diseases that aren’t transmitted from person to person. They usually last a long time and can be caused by genetic, physiological, environmental and behavioural factors.

The rise in NCDs is a growing part of the disease burden in Europe. Unlike other WHO regions, the leading cause of morbidity and mortality in the European region is NCDs. Of the six WHO regions, Europe is the worst affected by NCDs.

The major diseases affecting the region include cardiovascular disease, diabetes, cancer, chronic respiratory disease and mental disorders. Together, these five NCDs account for an estimated 86 percent of deaths and 77 percent of the disease burden in Europe.

Obesity, which is both an NCD and a risk factor for other NCDs, affects 30 to 80 percent of adults and up to one third of children in the European region.

How does the WHO prevent and address NCDs? 

We work towards reducing the risk of NCDs and improving population health across the 53 member states of the WHO European Region. 

To set norms and standards and provide evidence-based policies, we conduct research and consult with leading experts to generate authoritative health information. 

Because inappropriate foods have a large impact on NCD risks, the WHO has developed a Nutrient and Promotion Profile Model to optimise nutrition and reduce NCD risks in later life. 

It gives guidance on restricting the marketing of inappropriate foods for infants and children under the age of three years and comes with an accompanying toolkit and online platform. 

The model aims to help countries identify inappropriate foods, engage with stakeholders to raise awareness of product suitability and — one of the WHO’s strengths — effect policy and legislative change. 

We also monitor the impact of interventions and the evolving global, regional and national health situation to facilitate policy development, promote population health and reduce NCD risk across the region.

What do you do as a Consultant for Prevention and Control of Noncommunicable Diseases? 

My sweeping goal is to reduce the risk of NCDs and improve the health of our populations. I specialise in public health, food systems and the relationship between nutrition and disease. 

In particular, I give support on food systems and the development of nutrition-related health policies. I have an interest in disadvantaged groups and how research can inform public health policy to benefit population health. 

At the moment, I’m involved in projects investigating sustainable diets, commercially available baby foods, health taxes, nutrient profiling and more.  

I help translate the best evidence and best practice into policy guidance for all of the WHO European member states. With this rigour behind them, the WHO creates strong, evidence-based policies that are used by a variety of groups including governments and policymakers, healthcare workers, academics and industry. 

I’ve played key roles in devising and executing the NCD office healthy and sustainable diets work streams, which includes a number of areas. There’s a manual on healthy and sustainable public food procurement. Also, we’ve done research into plant-based diets and the nutritional profile of ultra-processed plant-based foods.

And, we’ve investigated the role of the digital food environment and meal delivery apps in healthy and sustainable diets. This growing area of the out of home food environment has, until recently, been outside the policy focus in many countries. 

Previously, my research included assessing the current outlook of diet in Europe through national dietary surveys. I looked at nutrient intakes, food portion sizes and trans fatty acid consumption across Europe. 

My work on sugar-sweetened beverage (SSB) taxes and restricting inappropriate marketing of unhealthy foods to children has included conducting research and coordinating expert meetings to help countries strengthen policy in these areas. This includes developing guidance and tools, including an SSB tax manual and Nutrient Profile Model.  

How has Leeds shaped your career? 

My time at Leeds shaped my career directly and indirectly. 

I was lucky to have an encouraging and inspiring supervisor, Professor Janet Cade, who gave me opportunities to present my work at conferences and dream big in taking and making opportunities in this area. 

I was already connected to WHO Europe when I was doing my PhD. My studies were part-funded by WHO Europe and I did an internship at the headquarters in Copenhagen. While interning, I learned about the policy aspects of nutrition and NCD prevention. 

I was motivated to carry out my research because it was directly linked to the WHO's aims and objectives, which I found very inspiring. I also realised that no one knew the state of play in Europe regarding national dietary surveys, which would make it difficult to set appropriate nutrition policy. 

When I was a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at Leeds, the School of Food Science and Nutrition was named the first WHO Collaborating Centre in Nutritional Epidemiology.  

Do you work with our academics at Leeds? 

I still work closely with Janet and others at the Leeds Collaborating Centre, and enjoy maintaining my Leeds links. 

Most recently, I worked with the Leeds Collaborating Centre on developing and launching the NPPM, which I’ve already mentioned. It’s a ground-breaking nutrient and promotion profile model for foods for infants and young children. It addresses the growing international concern about the suitability for infants and young children of some commercial food products sold across Europe.  

We launched the model at the International Union of Nutritional Sciences conference in Tokyo last December. Countries across the region are using it to assess the baby food market in their national context and also to advocate for stronger monitoring policies and to protect infants and young child health.