Christie Custodio-Lumsden, PhD

  • Assistant Professor of Nutrition Sciences (in Dental Medicine)

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Overview

Dr. Christie Custodio-Lumsden is an Associate Research Scientist in the Section of Population Oral Health at the Columbia University College of Dental Medicine. She serves as the Research Methods Seminar Course Lead for the Columbia/ NY Presbyterian Pediatric Dentistry Residency Program, and is a member of the College of Dental Medicine’s Diversity Affairs Committee.

Dr. Custodio-Lumsden received her PhD and MPhil in Behavioral Nutrition from Columbia University in 2013. After completing her dissertation, entitled The Diet and Early Childhood Caries (DECC) Study: Validation of a Novel ECC Risk Assessment Tool and Investigation of Diet-Related ECC Risk Factors, she joined the College of Dental Medicine as a Postdocoral Research Scientist. Prior to pursuing her doctoral degree, Dr. Custodio-Lumsden earned an MS in Nutrition Education in 2009 and completed the Dietetic Internship at Teachers College, becoming a Registered Dietitian and NYS Certified Dietitian-Nutritionist in 2010. Dr. Custodio-Lumsden acquired clinical and medical nutrition counseling skills during her five-year involvement as a Clinical Nutritionist at the Hospital for Special Surgery.

Currently, Dr. Custodio-Lumsden’s work is focused on designing and conducting research to encourage adoption of healthy diet-related behaviors to reduce oral health disparities in young children.

Academic Appointments

  • Assistant Professor of Nutrition Sciences (in Dental Medicine)

Languages

  • Spanish

Gender

  • Female

Credentials & Experience

Education & Training

  • BA, 2002 Psychology & Sociology (Dual Degree), State University of New York at Stony Brook, NY
  • MS, 2009 Nutrition Education, Columbia University, Teachers College
  • RD, CDN, 2010 Dietetic Internship, Columbia University, Teachers College
  • PhD, 2013 Behavioral Nutrition, Columbia University Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, NY
  • MPhil, 2013 Behavioral Nutrition, Columbia University Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, NY
  • Internship: 2010 Columbia University, Teachers College

Committees, Societies, Councils

Academic Service

  • 2013- Present: Diversity Affairs Committee, Columbia University College of Dental Medicine
  • Committee member and Self Awareness Program Facilitator for new student orientation

Professional Organizations & Societies

  • 2008 – Present: Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics
  • 2010 – Present: Greater New York Dietetic Association
  • 2014 – Present: American Association for Dental Research
  • 2014 – Present: International Association for Dental Research
  • 2013 – Present: Society for Nutrition Education and Behavior

Honors & Awards

  • Magna Cum Laude
  • Phi Beta Kappa

Research

The primary aim of my research engagement is to develop a robust research portfolio focused on health disparities research by enhancing cross-disciplinary collaborations between nutrition and oral health.

Over the last two years I have been principally engaged in a CMS-funded early childhood caries (ECC) prevention project targeting low-income, Hispanic children in New York City (PI: Edelstein). I have had the benefit of working on this project from inception, and have gained considerable experience as Project Manager. I am involved in planning, coordination, reporting, and monitoring of activities; gaining administrative, organizational, oversight and communication skills essential to successful leadership of a research team.

I am further enhancing my research planning and design skills through a NIDCR-funded R34 planning grant (PIs: Edelstein and Basch). Working closely with my mentors and colleagues across the University, this project aims to plan a randomized controlled trial and develop a U01 proposal, to build upon our prior ECC prevention studies. An important element of this work is organizing personnel across sites and disciplines to form a collaborative, complementary research team. This has better prepared me to conceptualize and logistically plan a large trial.

I have also been involved in an American Dental Association Foundation’s Samuel D. Harris Fund for Children’s Dental Health (PI: Basch) project. This perinatal ECC prevention research is evaluating text messages as an intervention follow-up with Hispanic Head Start mothers. I have led efforts to establish collaboration with Head Start partners and to train and supervise research assistants. This has broadened my experience as both a supervisor and mentor, providing mentorship to a dental public health resident to develop an abstract and poster presented at the 2015 National Oral Health Conference.

Grants

Present Support

  • Co-Investigator, April 1, 2015 – March 31, 2016
    Planning a Stage II Trial to Prevent ECC Progression. 1 R34 DE023158-01A1, National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research, Clinical Trial or Biomarker Clinical Evaluation Study Planning Grant (R34), Funding Opportunity PAR-11-338.
    Columbia University College of Dental Medicine, New York, NY
    Principal Investigators: Burton L. Edelstein, DDS, MPH and Charles E. Basch, PhD, MPH
    The purpose of this project is to prepare and apply for a U01 to support a behavioral randomized controlled trial (B-RCT) of MySmileBuddy by developing the organizational and management structures, detailed descriptions of the roles and responsibilities of study personnel, partnerships with key organizations to assure feasibility and plan logistics for conducting the B-RCT, including cohort recruitment/retention; sample size determination; and clustered randomized design.
  • Project Manager, September 1, 2014 – August 31, 2017
    MySmileBuddy: Demonstrating the Value of Technology-Assisted Non-Surgical Caries Management in Young Children. 1C12013003564, The Center for Medicaid and Medicare Innovation, Health Care Innovation Award Round 2 (HCIA2)
    Columbia University College of Dental Medicine, New York, NY
    Principal Investigator: Burton L. Edelstein, DDS, MPH
    The primary objective of this study is to evaluate whether a non-surgical, behavioral disease management intervention will produce better oral health outcomes and lower treatment costs than traditional surgical dental rehabilitation under general anesthesia in the operating room.
  • Co-Investigator, September 1, 2014 – May 31, 2016
    Evaluating an Innovative Educational Program for Pre- and Postnatal Mothers, MySmileBuddy, to Prevent Early Childhood Caries (ECC). Samuel D. Harris Fund for Children’s Dental Health, American Dental Association Foundation.
    Teachers College Columbia University, New York, NY
    Principal Investigator: Charles E. Basch
    The primary aim of this project is to evaluate changes in knowledge, beliefs, and reported behaviors regarding oral health concomitant to completion of an innovative educational early childhood caries prevention program targeting pre- and postnatal mothers in a New York City Early Head Start program.
  • Co-Investigator, February 28, 2012 – Present
    The Diet and Early Childhood Caries (DECC) Study
    Teachers College, Columbia University and Columbia University College of Dental Medicine, New York, NY
    Principal Investigator: Burton L. Edelstein, DDS, MPH
    A primary aim of the DECC study is to validate a novel Early Childhood Caries (ECC) risk assessment tool, MySmileBuddy (MSB), in a predominantly Spanish speaking, low income, urban population, and to investigate diet-related ECC risk factors. MSB serves as an interactive platform for education and goal setting for ECC prevention and a comprehensive ECC assessment tool that evaluates diet, feeding practices, general attitudes and beliefs, fluoride use, and family history. The DECC study evaluated associations between physical evidence of caries risk and MSB risk assessment scores, frequency of oral exposures, length of oral exposure time, anthropometrics, and impact of the MSB intervention on achievement of ECC-related behavior changes.

Past Support

  • Project Member, July 1, 2013 – June 30, 2015
    Faculty Development in General, Pediatric, and Public Health Dentistry. D86HP24475, HRSA/BHPr
    Columbia University College of Dental Medicine, New York, NY
    Principal Investigator: Burton L. Edelstein, DDS, MPH
    The primary aim of this training program is to encourage trainees and practitioners to pursue careers in academic dentistry, through masters level education in public health, adult education, or a related field, through an interdisciplinary curriculum focused on young children and through an interactive website that encourages private practitioners to consider pursuing a career in academia.
  • Project Member, July 1, 2013 – June 30, 2015
    Postdoctoral Training in General, Pediatric, and Public Health Dentistry. D88HP20109, HRSA/BHPr
    Columbia University College of Dental Medicine, New York, NY
    Principal Investigator: Burton L. Edelstein, DDS, MPH
    The primary goal of this program is to foster career-long engagement of pediatric dental specialists in the care of underserved children and their families through training for residents, post-residency fellows, and continued training for practitioners.
  • Project Member, July 1, 2013 – June 30, 2015
    Pre-doctoral Training in General, Pediatric, and Public Health Dentistry. D85HP20031, HRSA/BHPr
    Columbia University College of Dental Medicine, New York, NY
    Principal Investigator: Burton L. Edelstein, DDS, MPH
    The primary objective of this project is to improve pre-doctoral training in primary care dentistry that promotes improvement of oral health care for vulnerable populations across the lifespan through a DDS-MPH expansion, a curriculum change, and extramural experiences expansion.
  • Research Assistant, January 2009 - 2010
    Promoting Osteoporosis Medication Adherence in Fracture Patients (PROMTE): A Pilot Study Teachers College, Columbia University and Weill Cornell Medical Center, New York, NY
    Principal Investigator: Randi L. Wolf, PhD
    The aim of this study was to encourage adherence to osteoporosis medication via tailored telephone intervention with adults who sustained an osteoporosis-related bone fracture. All participants were patients receiving new prescriptions for a bisphosphonate oral medication or an injectable osteoporosis treatment at the time of recruitment. Poor medication adherence for osteoporosis treatment is often the result of undesirable side effects, inconvenience of medication regimen, and inadequate knowledge of disease treatment; thus, the PROMOTE study was designed to enhance participant understanding of these knowledge areas as well as to help participants overcome barriers to medication adherence.
  • Research Assistant, October 2008 - 2010
    I-CARE Project
    Teachers College, Columbia University, New York, NY
    Principal Investigator: Charles E. Basch, PhD, MPH
    Supervisor: Randi L. Wolf, PhD
    The I-CARE Project was conducted under a study funded by the National Institutes of Health entitled Evaluating Alternative Retinopathy Screening Approaches. The main objective was to evaluate various methods for increasing utilization of dilated eye exams in a predominantly minority population of adults with diabetes. The dilated eye exam is a screening method for identifying individuals at risk for diabetic retinopathy, a damaging complication of diabetes that causes vision loss and may lead to blindness.


For a complete list of publications, please visit PubMed.gov