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Nick Bellissimo

Nick Bellissimo

Associate Professor
EducationPhD
OfficeCUI-109, Centre for Urban Innovation
Phone416-979-5000, ext. 553026
Areas of ExpertiseFood intake regulation; Pediatric nutrition; Exercise physiology; Energy imbalances.
http://www.ndlabs.ca (external link) 

Nick Bellissimo is an associate professor and director of the Nutrition Discovery Labs in the School of Nutrition at Toronto Metropolitan University.  His research program is dedicated to advancing our understanding of human ingestive behavior, with a particular emphasis on elucidating the determinants of food intake control in children. Through his interdisciplinary research program, he has examined the associations among macronutrient composition, exercise, hormonal and environmental factors with the goal of informing the development of evidence-based guidelines for promoting healthier body weights. He has significant leadership in the design of experimental trials related to diet and exercise, and in the design and testing of novel food ingredients, food formulations on satiety, and on biomarkers related to health and disease. He is a member of several journal editorial boards, and provides scientific advising to government agencies and the food industry.

2024

  • Zare, M., Zeinalabedini, M., Koujan, S. E., Bellissimo, N., & Azadbakht, L. (2024). Effect of stevia on blood glucose and HbA1C: A meta-analysis. Diabetes & Metabolic Syndrome, 18(7), 103092. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.dsx.2024.103092 (external link) 
  • Hammond, L., Wurtele, M., de Almeida, R., Silva, C., DeBlasi, J., Lu, Y., & Bellissimo, N. (2024). The effect of allulose on the attenuation of glucose release from rice in a static in-vitro digestion model. Foods, 13(15), 2308. https://doi.org/10.3390/foods13152308 (external link) 
  • Cayabyab, K. C., Shin, M. J., Heimuli, M. S., Kim, I. J., D’Agostino, D. P., Johnson, R. P., Koutnik, A. P., Bellissimo, N., Diamond, D. M., Norwitz, N. G., Arroyo, J. A., Reynolds, P. R., & Bikman, B. T. (2024). The metabolic and endocrine effects of a 12-wk allulose-rich diet. Nutrients, 16(12), 1821. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu16121821 (external link) 
  • Coussa, A., Bellissimo, N., Poulia, K.-A., & Karavetian, M. (2024). Use of mind genomics for public health and wellbeing: Lessons from the COVID-19 pandemic. Advances in Biomedical and Health Sciences, 3(2), 72–78. https://doi.org/10.4103/abhs.abhs_9_24 (external link) 
  • Nasimi, N., Jamshidi, S., Askari, A., Zolfaghari, N., Nouri, M., Bellissimo, N., & Faghih, S. (2024). Effect of vitamin D supplementation or fortification on bone turnover markers in women: A systematic review and meta-analysis. British Journal of Nutrition, 1–34. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0007114524000060 (external link) 
  • Robayo, S., Kucab, M., Walker, S. E., Suitor, K., D’Aversa, K., Morello, O., & Bellissimo, N. (2024). Effect of 100% orange juice and a volume-matched sugar-sweetened drink on subjective appetite, food intake, and glycemic response in adults. Nutrients, 16, 242. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu16020242 (external link) 
  • Ahmadi, H., Askari, M., Suitor, K., Bellissimo, N., & Azadbakht, L. (2024). The association of different types of amino acid intake and physical growth among children. Clinical Nutrition ESPEN, 60, 165–172. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.clnesp.2023.12.143 (external link) 

2023

  • Pishva, A., Jamshidi, S., Aghakhani, A., Rezaei, M., Rostampoor, Y., Yekaninejad, M. S., Bellissimo, N., & Azadbakht, L. (2023). Association between food insecurity and vision impairment among older adults: A pooled analysis of data from six low‐ and middle‐income countries. The Journal of Nutrition, Health & Aging, 27(4), 257-264. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12603-023-1903-1 (external link) 
  • Farahmand, M. A., Daneshzad, E., Fung, T. T., Zahidi, F., Muhammadi, M., Bellissimo, N., & Azadbakht, L. (2023). What is the impact of vitamin D supplementation on glycemic control in people with type-2 diabetes: A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials. BMC Endocrine Disorders, 23(1), 15. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12902-022-01209-x (external link) 
  • Mohabati, S., Mirahmadizadeh, A., Hassanzadeh-Rostami, Z., Bellissimo, N., & Faghih, S. (2023). The relationship between weight status and food environments, peer influence, and dietary intake among high-school students: A case-control study. Nutrition & Food Science, 54(2), 391-402. https://doi.org/10.1108/NFS-03-2023-0049 (external link) 

2022

  • Bellissimo, N., & Azadbakht, L. (2022). Prevalence of household food insecurity among a healthy Iranian population: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Frontiers in Nutrition, 9, 1006543. https://doi.org/10.3389/fnut.2022.1006543 (external link) 
  • Kangani, N., Mohammadi, M., Zeinolabedin, M., Bellissimo, N., & Azadbakht, L. (2022). Association between different types of edible oils and anthropometric indices, mood, and appetite among women. International Journal of Clinical Practice, 2022, 1233748. https://doi.org/10.1155/2022/1233748 (external link) 
  • Asgari, E., Chamary, M., Bellissimo, N., & Azadbakht, L. (2022). Association between adherence to the MIND diet and overweight and obesity in children: An exploratory study. Clinical Nutrition ESPEN, 51, 313-318. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.clnesp.2022.08.008 (external link) 
  • Asgari, E., Askari, M., Bellissimo, N., & Azadbakht, L. (2022). Association between ultra-processed food intake, overweight, obesity, and malnutrition among children in Tehran, Iran. International Journal of Clinical Practice, 2022, 8310260. https://doi.org/10.1155/2022/8310260 (external link) 
  • Dubelt-Moroz, A., Warner, M., Heal, B., Khalesi, S., Wegener, J., Totosy de Zepetnek, J. O., Lee, J. J., Polecrone, T., El-Sarraj, J., Holmgren, E., & Bellissimo, N. (2022). Food insecurity, dietary intakes, and eating behaviours in a convenience sample of Toronto youth. Children, 9(8), 1119. https://doi.org/10.3390/children9081119 (external link) 
  • Viana, K. D. A. L., Davidov, S., Morello, O., Puga Arguello, D. M., Moskowitz, H., & Bellissimo, N. (2022). Identifying consumer mindsets related to sugars consumption in Canadian adults. Dietetics, 1(3), 137-147. https://doi.org/10.3390/dietetics1030014 (external link) 
  • Hammond, L., Morello, O., Kucab, M., Totosy de Zepetnek, J. O., Lee, J. J., Doheny, T., & Bellissimo, N. (2022). Predictive validity of image-based motivation-to-eat visual analogue scales in normal weight children and adolescents aged 9-14 years. Nutrients, 14(3), 636. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu14030636 (external link) 
  • Lee, C. T., Ting, G. K., Bellissimo, N., & Khalesi, S. (2022). The associations between lifestyle factors and mental well-being in baccalaureate nursing students: An observational study. Nursing & Health Sciences, 24(1), 255-264. https://doi.org/10.1111/nhs.12923 (external link) 
  • Daneshzad, E., Heshmati, J., Basirat, V., Keshavarz, S. A., Qorbani, M., Larijani, B., Bellissimo, N., & Azadbakht, L. (2022). The effect of the dietary approaches to stop hypertension (DASH) diet on sleep, mental health, and hormonal changes: A randomized clinical trial in women with type 2 diabetes. Frontiers in Nutrition, 9, 775543. https://doi.org/10.3389/fnut.2022.775543 (external link) 
  • Askari, M., Daneshzad, E., Darooghegi Mofrad, M., Bellissimo, N., Suitor, K., & Azadbakht, L. (2022). Vegetarian diet and the risk of depression, anxiety, and stress symptoms: A systematic review and meta-analysis of observational studies. Critical Reviews in Food Science and Nutrition, 62(1), 261-271. https://doi.org/10.1080/10408398.2020.1814991 (external link) 

2021

  • Zamani, B., Daneshzad, E., Mofrad, M. D., Namazi, N., Larijani, B., Bellissimo, N., & Azadbakht, L. (2021). Dietary quality index and cardiometabolic risk factors among adult women. Iranian Journal of Public Health, 50(8), 1713-1721. https://doi.org/10.18502/ijph.v50i8.6819 (external link) 
  • Mozaffari, H., Jalilpiran, Y., Suitor, K., Bellissimo, N., & Azadbakht, L. (2021). Associations between empirically derived dietary patterns and cardiovascular risk factors among older adult men. International Journal of Vitamin and Nutrition Research. 93(4), 308–318; https://doi.org/10.1024/0300-9831/a000725 (external link) 
  • Askari, M., Daneshzad, E., Naghshi, S., Bellissimo, N., Suitor, K., & Azadbakht, L. (2021). Healthy eating index and anthropometric status in young children: A cross-sectional study. Clinical Nutrition ESPEN, 45, 306-311. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.clnesp.2021.07.030 (external link) 
  • Mozaffari, H., Askari, M., Bellissimo, N., & Azadbakht, L. (2021). Associations between dietary intake of B vitamins and cardiovascular risk factors in elderly men: A cross-sectional study. International Journal of Clinical Practice, 75(10), e14691. https://doi.org/10.1111/ijcp.14691 (external link) 
  • Gabay, G., Gere, A., Fehér, O., Bellissimo, N., & Moskowitz, H. (2021). Rapid discovery of optimal messages for behavioral intervention: The case of Hungary and COVID-19. Heliyon, 7(12), e08535. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.heliyon.2021.e08535 (external link) 
  • Gere, A., Harizi, A., Bellissimo, N., Moskowitz, H., & Kokai, Z. (2021). Consumer-driven and consumer-perceptible food innovation. In Innovation in the Food Industry. Elsevier Books.
  • Rajaie, H., Rabiee, M. R., Bellissimo, N., & Faghih, S. (2021). Independent and combined effects of calcium and vitamin D supplementation on blood lipids in overweight or obese premenopausal women: A triple-blind randomized controlled clinical trial. International Journal of Preventive Medicine, 12(1), 52. https://doi.org/10.4103/ijpvm.IJPVM_294_19 (external link) 
  • Jafari, A., Jalilpiran, Y., Suitor, K., Bellissimo, N., & Azadbakht, L. (2021). The association of dietary choline and betaine with anthropometric measurements among six-year-old children: A cross-sectional study. BMC Pediatrics, 21(1), 213. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12887-021-02677-1 (external link) 
  • Schwartz, A., & Bellissimo, N. (2021). Nicotine and energy balance: A review examining the effect of nicotine on hormonal appetite regulation and energy expenditure. Appetite, 164, 105260. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.appet.2021.105260 (external link) 
  • Askari, M., Daneshzad, E., Jafari, A., Bellissimo, N., Suitor, K., Dorosty-Motlagh, A. R., & Azadbakht, L. (2021). Food quality score and anthropometric status among six-year-old children: A cross-sectional study. International Journal of Clinical Practice. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1111/ijcp.14102 (external link) 
  • Jafari, A., Ghanbari, M., Shahinfar, H., Bellissimo, N., & Azadbakht, L. (2021). The association between dietary acid load with cardiometabolic risk factors and inflammatory markers amongst elderly men: A cross-sectional study. International Journal of Clinical Practice. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1111/ijcp.14109 (external link) 
  • Gheller, B., Li, A., Gheller, M., Armstrong, T., Vandenboer, E., Bellissimo, N., Anini, Y., Hamilton, J. K., Nunes, F., Mollard, R. C., Anderson, G. H., & Luhovyy, B. L. (2021). The effect of dairy products and non-dairy snacks on food intake, subjective appetite, and cortisol levels in children: A randomized control study. Applied Physiology, Nutrition, and Metabolism. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1139/apnm-2020-0909 (external link) 
  • Totosy de Zepetnek, J. O., Lee, J. J., Boateng, T., Plastina, S. E., Cleary, S., Huang, L., Kucab, M., Paterakis, S., Brett, N. R., & Bellissimo, N. (2021). Test-retest reliability and validity of body composition methods in adults. Clinical Physiology and Functional Imaging. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1111/cpf.12716 (external link) 
  • Daneshzad, E., Dorosty-Motlagh, A. R., Bellissimo, N., Suitor, K., & Azadbakht, L. (2021). Food insecurity, dietary acid load, dietary energy density, and anthropometric indices among Iranian children. Eating and Weight Disorders, 26(3), 839-846. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40519-020-00921-8 (external link) 
  • Wang, Y. F., Bellissimo, N., Kitts, D. D., Turgeon O’Brien, H., Ma, W. L. D., Suh, M., Luhovyy, B., DiAngelo, C., Pasut, L., Marsden, S., Chung, M., & Gurcan, A. (2021). Knowledge and perceptions of carbohydrates among nutrition-major and nutrition-elective undergraduate students in Canada. Journal of the American College of Nutrition, 40(2), 164-171. https://doi.org/10.1080/07315724.2020.1750503 (external link) 
  • Kucab, M., Bellissimo, N., Prusky, C., Brett, N. R., & Totosy de Zepetnek, J. O. (2021). Effects of a high-intensity interval training session and chocolate milk on appetite and cognitive performance in youth aged 9-13 years. European Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 75(1), 172-179. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41430-020-00718-z (external link) 
  • Askari, M., Daneshzad, E., Jafari, A., Bellissimo, N., Suitor, K., & Azadbakht, L. (2021). Association of nut and legume consumption with Framingham 10-year risk of general cardiovascular disease in older adult men: A cross-sectional study. Clinical Nutrition ESPEN, 42, 373-380. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.clnesp.2020.12.024 (external link) 

2020

  • Darooghegi Mofrad, M., Siassi, F., Guilani, B., Bellissimo, N., Suitor, K., & Azadbakht, L. (2020). The association of food quality index with mental health in women: A cross-sectional study. BMC Research Notes, 13(1), 557. https://doi.org/10.1186/s13104-020-05401-x (external link) 
  • Bellissimo, N., Gabay, G., Gere, A., Kucab, M., & Moskowitz, H. (2020). Containing COVID-19 by matching messages on social distancing to emergent mindsets: The case of North America. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 17(21), 8096. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph17218096 (external link) 
  • Bellissimo, N., Fansabedian, T., Wong, V. C. H., Totosy de Zepetnek, J. O., Brett, N. R., Schwartz, A., Cassin, S., Suitor, K., & Rousseau, D. (2020). Effect of increasing the dietary protein content of breakfast on subjective appetite, short-term food intake, and diet-induced thermogenesis. Nutrients, 12(10), 3025. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu12103025 (external link) 
  • Moradi, M., Daneshzad, E., Mortazavi Najafabadi, M., Bellissimo, N., Suitor, K., & Azadbakht, L. (2020). Association between adherence to the Mediterranean diet and renal function biomarkers and cardiovascular risk factors among diabetic patients with nephropathy. Clinical Nutrition ESPEN, 40, 156-163. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.clnesp.2020.09.032 (external link) 
  • Askari, M., Daneshzad, E., Darooghegi Mofrad, M., Bellissimo, N., Suitor, K., & Azadbakht, L. (2020). Vegetarian diet and the risk of depression, anxiety, and stress symptoms: A systematic review and meta-analysis of observational studies. Critical Reviews in Food Science and Nutrition, 1-11. https://doi.org/10.1080/10408398.2020.1814991 (external link) 
  • Bellissimo, N., Amalraj, R., Lee, J. J., Brett, N. R., Totosy de Zepetnek, J. O., Proteau, S., & Rousseau, D. (2020). Effect of white potatoes on subjective appetite, food intake, and glycemic response in healthy older adults. Nutrients, 12(9), 2606. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu12092606 (external link) 
  • Jalilpiran, Y., Darooghegi Mofrad, M., Mozaffari, H., Bellissimo, N., & Azadbakht, L. (2020). Adherence to dietary approaches to stop hypertension (DASH) and Mediterranean dietary patterns in relation to cardiovascular risk factors in older adults. Clinical Nutrition ESPEN, 39, 87-95. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.clnesp.2020.07.013 (external link) 
  • Daneshzad, E., Tehrani, H., Bellissimo, N., & Azadbakht, L. (2020). Dietary total antioxidant capacity and gestational diabetes mellitus: A case-control study. Oxidative Medicine and Cellular Longevity, 2020, 5471316. https://doi.org/10.1155/2020/5471316 (external link) 
  • Gere, A., Harizi, A., Bellissimo, N., Roberts, D., & Moskowitz, H. (2020). Creating a mind genomics wiki for non-meat analogs. Sustainability, 12(13), 5352. https://doi.org/10.3390/su12135352 (external link) 
  • Lee, J. J., Brett, N. R., Chang, J. T., Totosy de Zepetnek, J. O., & Bellissimo, N. (2020). Effects of white potatoes consumed with eggs on satiety, food intake, and glycemic response in children and adolescents. Journal of the American College of Nutrition, 39(2), 147-154. https://doi.org/10.1080/07315724.2019.1620659 (external link) 
  • Daneshzad, E., Keshavarz, S.-A., Qorbani, M., Larijani, B., Bellissimo, N., & Azadbakht, L. (2020). Association of dietary acid load and plant-based diet index with sleep, stress, anxiety, and depression in diabetic women. British Journal of Nutrition, 123(8), 901-912. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0007114519003179 (external link) 
  • Baker, M., Totosy de Zepetnek, J. O., Gladanac, B., Miller, K., Da Silva, M., Constantino, M., Rossiter, M., Welch, J., & Bellissimo, N. (2020). Pre-meal active video game playing increased subjective appetite but not food intake in children and adolescents. Physiology & Behavior, 222, 112931. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.physbeh.2020.112931 (external link) 
  • Daneshzad, E., Moradi, M., Maracy, M. R., Brett, N. R., Bellissimo, N., & Azadbakht, L. (2020). The association of maternal plant-based diets and the growth of breastfed infants. Health Promotion Perspectives, 10(2), 152-161. https://doi.org/10.34172/hpp.2020.25 (external link) 
  • Esmaeilinezhad, Z., Barati-Boldaji, R., Brett, N. R., Totosy de Zepetnek, J. O., Bellissimo, N., Babajafari, S., & Sohrabi, Z. (2020). The effect of synbiotics pomegranate juice on cardiovascular risk factors in PCOS patients: A randomized, triple-blinded, controlled trial. Journal of Endocrinological Investigation, 43(4), 539-548. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40618-019-01139-x (external link) 
  • Wang, F., Diangelo, C., Marsden, S. L., Pasut, L., Kitts, D., & Bellissimo, N. (2020). Knowledge of sugars consumption and the WHO sugars guideline among Canadian dietitians and other health professionals. Canadian Journal of Dietetic Practice and Research, 81(3), 142-145. https://doi.org/10.3148/cjdpr-2020-004 (external link) 
  • Zamani, B., Daneshzad, E., Siassi, F., Guilani, B., Bellissimo, N., & Azadbakht, L. (2020). Association of plant-based dietary patterns with psychological profile and obesity in Iranian women. Clinical Nutrition, 39(6), 1799-1808. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.clnu.2019.07.019 (external link) 
  • Williams, S. L., Vandelanotte, C., Irwin, C., Bellissimo, N., Heidke, P., Saluja, S., Saito, A., & Khalesi, S. (2020). Association between dietary patterns and sociodemographics: A cross-sectional study of Australian nursing students. Nursing & Health Sciences, 22(1), 38-48. https://doi.org/10.1111/nhs.12643 (external link) 
  • Mozaffari, H., Daneshzad, E., Larijani, B., Bellissimo, N., & Azadbakht, L. (2020). Dietary intake of fish, n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids, and risk of inflammatory bowel disease: A systematic review and meta-analysis of observational studies. European Journal of Nutrition, 59(1), 1-17. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00394-019-01901-0 (external link) 
  • Davidov, S., Battersby, N., Chy, C., Bellissimo, N., & Moskowitz, H. (2020). Sequencing the mind of the dairy consumer. Food Ingredients, 50-52.
  • Bellissimo, N., Gabay, G., & Moskowitz, H. R. (2020). Driving social distancing – profoundly & quickly understanding the mind of the citizen to create actionable instructions & long-term archival knowledge. Social Science Research Network. https://doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.3570121 (external link) 
  • Gabay, G., Bellissimo, N., Garby, I., Kommineni, V., Zemel, G., Gere, A., & Moskowitz, H. R. (2020). Driving public compliance with the health policy of social distancing: The case of the COVID-19 pandemic in India. Social Science Research Network. https://doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.3566655 (external link) 

  • Canadian Nutrition Society, President’s Volunteer Leadership Award, 2019
  • Dean’s Scholarly, Research and Creative Activity Award, Faculty of Community Services, 2017
  • Sue Williams Excellence in Teaching Award, Faculty of Community Services, 2016
  • Dean’s Teaching Award, Faculty of Community Services, 2014