Member Profile: Karen Keane

Dr Karen Keane is a lecturer in public health nutrition and sports science at the Atlantic Technological University, Ireland. Karen is an academic associate on the Sport and Exercise Nutrition Register (SENr) and a member of the Sport and Exercise Nutrition group at the Irish Nutrition and Dietetic Institute (INDI). Karen completed her PhD at Northumbria University in the United Kingdom in 2017. Her doctoral thesis investigated the Polyphenol Pharmacokinetics and Cardiovascular, Cognitive and Exercise Pharmacodynamics following Montmorency Tart Cherry Intake in Humans, the findings of which are published in several recognized nutrition journals, respectively. Since completing her PhD, Karen’s research interests have expanded to include the correlates of eating behaviors in sport and health and the female athlete. Karen continues to collaborate extensively with colleagues across the globe in academia, elite sport, national governing bodies and industry.

Alongside academia, Karen works as a performance nutritionist creating and developing resources and workshops whilst adopting a food first approach to help promote healthy eating and optimise sport performance amongst athletes. Karen previously worked with Sunderland academy for several years before moving back to Ireland in 2020. At present, most of her applied work is within the GAA (Gaelic Athletic Association), which is Ireland’s largest sporting organization.