Meghan Azad, PhD

Global Leader in Maternal-Child Health, Microbiome Research and Human Milk Science ​
A renowned pediatric researcher with a global reputation for excellence, Dr. Azad has published over 180 peer-reviewed papers and secured over $19M in research funds. Her THRiVE Discovery Lab studies how early experiences shape lifelong health, with a focus on early nutrition and the microbiome. 

Specialist in Team Science & Multidisciplinary Research Consortia
Known for her collaborative approach to science and leadership, Dr. Azad directs a large interdisciplinary research program with collaborations around the world and funding from diverse national and international organizations. 

Expert in Knowledge Mobilization 
Skilled at transforming complex research findings into accessible insights and impactful applications, Dr. Azad is a highly regarded speaker in academic, healthcare, government and public settings.  

Meghan Azad
MSc, ​PhD

Professor & Research Scientist

PhD, Biochemistry
and Medical Genetics
University of Manitoba


MSc, Epidemiology
London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine
​

Banting Postdoctoral Fellowship, Pediatrics
University of Alberta​

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​Dr. Azad is a Professor of Pediatrics and Child Health at the University of Manitoba, with cross appointments to Immunology, Human Nutritional Sciences and Community Health Sciences. She holds a Tier 2 Canada Research Chair in Early Nutrition and the Developmental Origins of Health and Disease. She Directs the THRiVE Discovery Lab where her team studies how early experiences shape lifelong health, with a focus on breastfeeding and the microbiome. 

Globally-Recognized Expertise in Infant Nutrition
Dr. Azad is a world-renowned expert in human milk science and the infant microbiome. She has has authored more than 160 peer-reviewed academic research papers that have been cited more than 16,000 times. She regularly serves on expert committees for government agencies (Health Canada; US National Institutes of Health; US National Academies of Science, Engineering and Medicine), intergovernmental organizations (United Nations; WHO), and commercial companies. She serves on the International Society for Research in Human Milk and Lactation Executive Council and the joint US/Canada Human Milk Composition Initiative. ​​

​International Research Leadership
Dr. Azad is the co-founder and director the Manitoba Interdisciplinary Lactation Centre (MILC). She is the former Deputy Director and current Knowledge Mobilization Chair of the CHILD Cohort Study, a national pregnancy cohort following 3500 children to understand how early life experiences shape lifelong health. She has led two randomized clinical trials evaluating different feeding regimes for premature infants and was recruited by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to develop and direct the $6.5M International Milk Composition (IMiC) Consortium.

​Award-Winning Research and Science Communication
Dr. Azad is an elected member of the Royal Society of Canada College of New Scholars. She received the International Society for Research in Human Milk and Lactation Erlich-Koldovsky Early Career Investigator Award (2018) and the International Human Milk Genomics Mid-Career Investigator Award (2020). Her research has been featured in the New York Times, Discover Magazine and The Economist, and she has appeared on CBC's Quirks & Quarks, CTV's The Social, and Australia's Catalyst science journalism program. She is featured in the documentaries Let Them Eat Dirt and Breast Milk Scientific. Dr. Azad has developed award-winning videos about her research, and her #Tweetorial research summaries regularly receive over 20,000 impressions each. Dr. Azad was named among the WXN Canada Top 100 Most Powerful Women (2020) and Canada’s Top 40 Under 40 (2021). She is a recipient of the Gairdner Momentum Award (2024) recognizing exceptional mid-career scientists in Canada.