Dr. Hu's major research interests include:

1. Epidemiology and prevention of type 2 diabetes and metabolic diseases through diet and lifestyle.
   
2. Gene-environment interactions in relation to type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular complications.
   
3. Methodological development (especially dietary pattern analyses) in nutritional epidemiology.
   
4. Obesity, metabolic syndrome, and cardiovascular disease in Chinese populations.

Dr. Hu's research has focused on diet and lifestyle determinants of type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease. He is the Principal Investigator of the diabetes component of the Nurses' Health Study, and leads two NIH-funded projects to study biochemical and genetic risk factors for cardiovascular complications among patients with diabetes in the Nurses' Health Study and Health Professionals' Follow-up Study. Dr. Hu's research has demonstrated that the vast majority of type 2 diabetes is preventable through diet and lifestyle modifications. His group has conducted detailed analyses of many dietary and lifestyle factors and risk of diabetes, including sugar-sweetened beverages, caffeine, iron, magnesium, and dietary patterns. These findings have contributed to current public health recommendations and policies for prevention of chronic disease. His group has also examined the link between pre-diabetes and cardiovascular disease and the relationship between inflammatory markers, iron overload, and risk of type 2 diabetes.

His current research has expanded to investigate complex interactions among nutrition, biomarkers, and genetic factors in the development of diabetes and cardiovascular complications. Dr. Hu is also collaborating with researchers from China to study obesity, metabolic syndrome, and cardiovascular disease in Chinese populations.

M.D., 1988, Tongji Medical University, China
M.P.H., 1994, University of Illinois at Chicago
Ph.D., 1996, University of Illinois at Chicago