Kartika Palar, PhD, MA
Associate Professor
Medicine
School of Medicine

Within these areas, I have a special interest in developing equitable community partnerships to design and evaluate program and policy solutions. I am interested in both safety-net interventions that address immediate needs, as well as policies that address upstream root causes of health inequity.

Current studies fall within one or more of the above research streams. I am PI of the 5-year NIH-funded Women, HIV/AIDS and Diabetes Study, or WAND Study, based within the US national Women’s Interagency HIV Study. WAND is using both qualitative and quantitative methods to understand the impact of social and economic barriers on HIV and diabetes health among women living with both conditions, with the goal of developing an intervention to improve HIV/diabetes co-management among women experiencing multiple vulnerabilities. I am also co-PI of the Changing Health through Food Support (CHEFS) Study, an RCT of comprehensive, medically appropriate food support to low-income, people with HIV in the San Francisco Bay Area in collaboration with Project Open Hand. I am co-leading the development of a community-based collaboration to evaluate urban gardens as a strategy to improve health among low-income people with diabetes in the Bay Area, and am involved with an urban garden intervention for people with HIV in the Dominican Republic. I am a co-investigator or collaborator on several other projects addressing food insecurity and health, and/or HIV/NCD co-morbidity, domestically and abroad.

My international work is largely based in Latin America, in collaboration with the World Food Programme and others. Finally, I have a strong commitment and passion for mentoring students and others with interest in issues of health equity, particularly those with backgrounds underrepresented in scientific research.

• Longitudinal Associations Between Neighborhood Factors and HIV Care Outcomes in the WIHS.
  AIDS and behavior 2020 Chandran A, Edmonds A, Benning L, Wentz E, Adedimeji A, Wilson TE, Blair-Spence A, Palar K, Cohen M, Adimora A
• Mechanisms from Food Insecurity to Worse HIV Treatment Outcomes in US Women Living with HIV.
  AIDS patient care and STDs 2020 Weiser SD, Sheira LA, Palar K, Kushel M, Wilson TE, Adedimeji A, Merenstein D, Cohen M, Turan JM, Metsch L, Adimora AA, Ofotokun I, Wentz E, Tien PC, Frongillo EA
• Food Insecurity, Sexual Risk, and Substance Use in Young Adults.
  The Journal of adolescent health : official publication of the Society for Adolescent Medicine 2020 Nagata JM, Palar K, Gooding HC, Garber AK, Tabler JL, Whittle HJ, Bibbins-Domingo K, Weiser SD
• Associations between food insecurity and psychotropic medication use among women living with HIV in the United States.
  Epidemiology and psychiatric sciences 2020 Whittle HJ, Wolfe WR, Sheira LA, Frongillo EA, Palar K, Merenstein D, Wilson TE, Adedimeji A, Cohen MH, Wentz EL, Tien PC, Weiser SD
• Church-based interventions to address obesity among African Americans and Latinos in the United States: a systematic review.
  Nutrition reviews 2020 Flórez KR, Payán DD, Palar K, Williams MV, Katic B, Derose KP
• Congregational involvement in HIV: A qualitative comparative analysis of factors influencing HIV activity among diverse urban congregations.
  Social science & medicine (1982) 2019 Mendel P, Green HD, Palar K, Kanouse DE, Bluthenthal RN, Mata MA, Oden CW, Derose KP
• Food Insecurity Is Associated With Poorer Mental Health and Sleep Outcomes in Young Adults.
  The Journal of adolescent health : official publication of the Society for Adolescent Medicine 2019 Nagata JM, Palar K, Gooding HC, Garber AK, Whittle HJ, Bibbins-Domingo K, Weiser SD
• Food Insecurity and Chronic Disease in US Young Adults: Findings from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health.
  Journal of general internal medicine 2019 Nagata JM, Palar K, Gooding HC, Garber AK, Bibbins-Domingo K, Weiser SD
• Nutrition and Health Improvements After Participation in an Urban Home Garden Program.
  Journal of nutrition education and behavior 2019 Palar K, Lemus Hufstedler E, Hernandez K, Chang A, Ferguson L, Lozano R, Weiser SD
• Association Between Food Insecurity and Migraine Among US Young Adults.
  JAMA neurology 2019 Nagata JM, Weiser SD, Gooding HC, Garber AK, Bibbins-Domingo K, Palar K
• Food insecurity is associated with anxiety, stress, and symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder in a cohort of women with or at risk of HIV in the United States.
  The Journal of nutrition 2019 Whittle HJ, Sheira LA, Wolfe WR, Frongillo EA, Palar K, Merenstein D, Wilson TE, Adedimeji A, Weber KM, Adimora AA, Ofotokun I, Metsch L, Turan JM, Wentz EL, Tien PC, Weiser SD
• Food Insecurity and Unmet Needs Among Youth and Young Adults Living With HIV in the San Francisco Bay Area.
  The Journal of adolescent health : official publication of the Society for Adolescent Medicine 2019 Reeder C, Neilands TB, Palar K, Saberi P
• Persistent Food Insecurity Is Associated with Adverse Mental Health among Women Living with or at Risk of HIV in the United States.
  The Journal of nutrition 2019 Tuthill EL, Sheira LA, Palar K, Frongillo EA, Wilson TE, Adedimeji A, Merenstein D, Cohen MH, Wentz EL, Adimora AA, Ofotokun I, Metsch L, Kushel M, Turan JM, Konkle-Parker D, Tien PC, Weiser SD
• "It Was as Though My Spirit Left, Like They Killed Me": The Disruptive Impact of an HIV-Positive Diagnosis among Women in the Dominican Republic.
  Journal of the International Association of Providers of AIDS Care 2019 Payán DD, Derose KP, Fulcar MA, Farías H, Palar K
• Food Insecurity, Internalized Stigma, and Depressive Symptoms Among Women Living with HIV in the United States.
  AIDS and behavior 2018 Palar K, Frongillo EA, Escobar J, Sheira LA, Wilson TE, Adedimeji A, Merenstein D, Cohen MH, Wentz EL, Adimora AA, Ofotokun I, Metsch L, Tien PC, Turan JM, Weiser SD
• Predicting diabetes risk among HIV-positive and HIV-negative women.
  AIDS (London, England) 2018 Galaviz KI, Schneider MF, Tien PC, Mehta CC, Ofotokun I, Colasanti J, Marconi VC, Palar K, Wingood G, Adimora AA, Alcaide M, Cohen MH, Gustafson D, Karim R, Konkle-Parker D, Merenstein D, Sharma A, …
• Developing Pilot Interventions to Address Food Insecurity and Nutritional Needs of People Living With HIV in Latin America and the Caribbean: An Interinstitutional Approach Using Formative Research.
  Food and nutrition bulletin 2018 Derose KP, Palar K, Farías H, Adams J, Martínez H
• Longitudinal associations between food insecurity and substance use in a cohort of women with or at risk for HIV in the United States.
  Addiction (Abingdon, England) 2018 Whittle HJ, Sheira LA, Frongillo EA, Palar K, Cohen J, Merenstein D, Wilson TE, Adedimeji A, Cohen MH, Adimora AA, Ofotokun I, Metsch L, Turan JM, Wentz EL, Tien PC, Weiser SD
• Room for Improvement: The HIV-Diabetes Care Continuum Over 15 Years in the Women's Interagency HIV Study.
  Open forum infectious diseases 2018 Colasanti J, Galaviz KI, Christina Mehta C, Palar K, Schneider MF, Tien P, Adimora AA, Alcaide M, Cohen MH, Gustafson D, Karim R, Merenstein D, Sharma A, Wingood G, Marconi VC, Ofotokun I, Ali MK
• Competing subsistence needs are associated with retention in care and detectable viral load among people living with HIV.
  Journal of HIV/AIDS & social services 2018 Palar K, Wong MD, Cunningham WE
• Food Insecurity is Associated with Poor HIV Outcomes Among Women in the United States.
  AIDS and behavior 2017 Spinelli MA, Frongillo EA, Sheira LA, Palar K, Tien PC, Wilson T, Merenstein D, Cohen M, Adedimeji A, Wentz E, Adimora AA, Metsch LR, Turan JM, Kushel MB, Weiser SD
• "The land of the sick and the land of the healthy": Disability, bureaucracy, and stigma among people living with poverty and chronic illness in the United States.
  Social science & medicine (1982) 2017 Whittle HJ, Palar K, Ranadive NA, Turan JM, Kushel M, Weiser SD
• Factors contributing to food insecurity among women living with HIV in the Dominican Republic: A qualitative study.
  PloS one 2017 Derose KP, Payán DD, Fulcar MA, Terrero S, Acevedo R, Farías H, Palar K
• Severe food insecurity is associated with overweight and increased body fat among people living with HIV in the Dominican Republic.
  AIDS care 2017 Derose KP, Ríos-Castillo I, Fulcar MA, Payán DD, Palar K, Escala L, Farías H, Martínez H
• Comprehensive and Medically Appropriate Food Support Is Associated with Improved HIV and Diabetes Health.
  Journal of urban health : bulletin of the New York Academy of Medicine 2017 Palar K, Napoles T, Hufstedler LL, Seligman H, Hecht FM, Madsen K, Ryle M, Pitchford S, Frongillo EA, Weiser SD
• How food insecurity contributes to poor HIV health outcomes: Qualitative evidence from the San Francisco Bay Area.
  Social science & medicine (1982) 2016 Whittle HJ, Palar K, Seligman HK, Napoles T, Frongillo EA, Weiser SD
• Food insecurity is associated with HIV, sexually transmitted infections and drug use among men in the United States.
  AIDS (London, England) 2016 Palar K, Laraia B, Tsai AC, Johnson MO, Weiser SD
• Experiences with food insecurity and risky sex among low-income people living with HIV/AIDS in a resource-rich setting.
  Journal of the International AIDS Society 2015 Whittle HJ, Palar K, Napoles T, Hufstedler LL, Ching I, Hecht FM, Frongillo EA, Weiser SD
• A pre-post pilot study of peer nutritional counseling and food insecurity and nutritional outcomes among antiretroviral therapy patients in Honduras.
  BMC nutrition 2015 Derose KP, Felician M, Han B, Palar K, Ramírez B, Farías H, Martínez H
• Food insecurity, chronic illness, and gentrification in the San Francisco Bay Area: An example of structural violence in United States public policy.
  Social science & medicine (1982) 2015 Whittle HJ, Palar K, Hufstedler LL, Seligman HK, Frongillo EA, Weiser SD
• Food Insecurity is Longitudinally Associated with Depressive Symptoms Among Homeless and Marginally-Housed Individuals Living with HIV.
  AIDS and behavior 2015 Palar K, Kushel M, Frongillo EA, Riley ED, Grede N, Bangsberg D, Weiser SD
• Impact of food support on food security and body weight among HIV antiretroviral therapy recipients in Honduras: a pilot intervention trial.
  AIDS care 2014 Palar K, Derose KP, Linnemayr S, Smith A, Farías H, Wagner G, Martinez H
• Facilitators and barriers to HIV activities in religious congregations: perspectives of clergy and lay leaders from a diverse urban sample.
  Journal of religion and health 2014 Mendel P, Derose KP, Werber L, Palar K, Kanouse DE, Mata M
• Tailored nutrition education and food assistance improve adherence to HIV antiretroviral therapy: evidence from Honduras.
  AIDS and behavior 2014 Martinez H, Palar K, Linnemayr S, Smith A, Derose KP, Ramírez B, Farías H, Wagner G
• Longitudinal assessment of associations between food insecurity, antiretroviral adherence and HIV treatment outcomes in rural Uganda.
  AIDS (London, England) 2014 Weiser SD, Palar K, Frongillo EA, Tsai AC, Kumbakumba E, Depee S, Hunt PW, Ragland K, Martin J, Bangsberg DR
• The organization of HIV and other health activities within urban religious congregations.
  Journal of urban health : bulletin of the New York Academy of Medicine 2013 Palar K, Mendel P, Derose KP
• Livelihood experiences and adherence to HIV antiretroviral therapy among participants in a food assistance pilot in Bolivia: a qualitative study.
  PloS one 2013 Palar K, Martin A, Oropeza Camacho ML, Derose KP
• Value for Money in Donor HIV Funding.
  Rand health quarterly 2012 Linnemayr S, Ryan GW, Liu J, Palar K
• Role of antiretroviral therapy in improving food security among patients initiating HIV treatment and care.
  AIDS (London, England) 2012 Palar K, Wagner G, Ghosh-Dastidar B, Mugyenyi P
• Negotiation Strategies for Antiretroviral Drug Purchasers in the United States.
  Rand health quarterly 2012 Linnemayr S, Ryan GW, Karir V, Liu J, Palar K
• Attitudes and beliefs related to HIV/AIDS in urban religious congregations: barriers and opportunities for HIV-related interventions.
  Social science & medicine (1982) 2012 Bluthenthal RN, Palar K, Mendel P, Kanouse DE, Corbin DE, Derose KP
• Religious congregations' involvement in HIV: a case study approach.
  AIDS and behavior 2011 Derose KP, Mendel PJ, Palar K, Kanouse DE, Bluthenthal RN, Castaneda LW, Corbin DE, Domínguez BX, Hawes-Dawson J, Mata MA, Oden CW
• Congregation-based programs to address HIV/AIDS: elements of successful implementation.
  Journal of urban health : bulletin of the New York Academy of Medicine 2011 Williams MV, Palar K, Derose KP
• Food insecurity and nutritional barriers to antiretroviral therapy: Lessons from Latin America and the Caribbean
  Journal of HIV/AIDS and Social Services 2011 Martin A, Palar K, Derose KP, Adams J.
• Potential societal savings from reduced sodium consumption in the U.S. adult population.
  American journal of health promotion : AJHP 2009 Palar K, Sturm R
• Waste in the U.S. Health care system: a conceptual framework.
  The Milbank quarterly 2008 Bentley TG, Effros RM, Palar K, Keeler EB