We certainly don’t need to tell middle-aged women about the weight gain and Harry-Potter-Esque body “shape shifting” that often happens to us after menopause. But what causes this gain in weight and its redistribution to our abdomen? And if we want to address it, what can we do?
We are thrilled that Dr. Fatima Cody Stanford, one of the foremost experts on the effects of menopause on weight, will address these questions and any others you bring to this Menopause Talk. Dr. Stanford is an Obesity Medicine Physician Scientist at Massachusetts General Hospital and Associate Professor of Medicine and Pediatrics at Harvard Medical School. Because of the many hats Dr. Stanford wears – as a practitioner, teacher, researcher, advocate, and policy maker– she is uniquely able to help us understand the many factors which can contribute to weight gain as we age, how such gains can impact us physically and emotionally, and the skinny on new weight-loss therapies on the horizon.
Dr. Margaret Nachtigall is a Board certified OB/GYN and Reproductive Endocrinologist. She graduated cum laude from Princeton University, received her medical degree from New York University School of Medicine, did her residency in OB/GYN at NYU School of Medicine followed by a fellowship in reproductive endocrinology at Yale University. She is an Associate Professor in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at New York where she holds a faculty position in the Division of Reproductive Endocrinology and many leadership roles in the medical school and residency training program. Selected roles include: Violet Society Advisor, Graduate Medical Education coach and Director of course content for reproductive endocrine.
A prominent leader in women’s health with extensive clinical and research experience in polycystic ovarian syndrome, infertility and menopause, Dr. Nachtigall is a founding member of the North American Menopause Society and a trustee on the Boards of The Foundation for Women’s Wellness and of the New York GYN Society. She is a highly sought speaker on Women’s health issues, frequently featured on Doctor Radio, and other national television shows and podcasts. She is devoted to providing individualized medical care to all of her patients, and, for the past 26 years, has worked with her mother, Dr. Lila Nachtigall, a world renowned menopause expert.
Dr. Stanford is an Associate Professor of Medicine and Pediatrics who practices and teaches at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH)/Harvard Medical School (HMS) as one of the first fellowship-trained obesity medicine physicians worldwide. She is one of the most highly cited obesity medicine physician-scientists with over 170 peer-reviewed publications.
Dr. Stanford received her BS and MPH from Emory University as an MLK Scholar, her MD from the Medical College of Georgia School of Medicine as a Stoney Scholar, her MPA from the Harvard Kennedy School of Government as a Zuckerman Fellow in the Harvard Center for Public Leadership, and her executive MBA as a merit-based scholarship recipient from the Quantic School of Business and Technology. She completed her Obesity Medicine & Nutrition Fellowship at Massachusetts General Hospital /Harvard Medical School MS after completing her internal medicine and pediatrics residency at the University of South Carolina. Dr. Stanford also has completed a medicine and media internship at the Discovery Channel.
Upon completing her MPH, Dr. Stanford received the Gold Congressional Award, the highest honor that Congress bestows upon America’s youth. Among her other countless awards, she was the recipient of the American Medical Association (AMA) Foundation Leadership Award in 2005, an AMA Paul Ambrose Award for national leadership among resident physicians in 2009, An AMA Inspirational Physician Award in 2015, The American College of Physicians (ACP) Joseph E. Johnson Leadership Award in 2013, the HMS Amos Diversity Award and Massachusetts Medical Society (MMS) Award for Women’s Health in 2017, the Obesity Society Clinician of the Year in 2020, the MMS Grant Rodkey Award for her dedication to medical students, and the AMA Dr. Edmond and Rima Cabbabe Dedication to the Profession Award, which recognizes a physician who demonstrates active and productive improvement to the profession of medicine through community service, advocacy, leadership, teaching, or philanthropy. In 2022, the National Academy of Medicine selected her as a Scholar in Diagnostic Excellence.
