NRFi's Founder, Dr. Brenna Bray, holds Ph.D. in Biomedical Sciences and Neuroscience and received postdoctoral training in Complementary and Integrative Health and Eating Disorders at the National University of Natural Medicine (NUNM) and Helfgott Research Institute with federal funding from the National Institute of Health (NIH) and the National Centers for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH). Dr. Bray's work and life are dedicated to using reserach to empower home for eating disorder experiences and treatments and for the social justice issues that often underpin binge eating.
Dr. Barnett is a dedicated naturopathic doctor (ND), health care provider and
consultant, and community health advocate who brings extensive experience in healthcare provision and consulting, business development and accounting, and community engagement to NRFi.
Dr. Barnett holds a Research Doctorate in Naturopathic Medicine, a Bachelor of Business Administration (B.B.A) in Marketing/Marketing Management, and a Bachelor of Science (BS) in Nutrition Sciences. Her diverse educational background underpins her holistic approach to health and wellness.
Angela Nauss, MS, LMFT is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist who specializes in treating post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), substance abuse, and eating disorders in the Denver Metro area. Her clinical expertise spans multiple areas, modalities, and regions, and includes clinical experience at The Los Angeles Homeless Mission as well as other Domestic Violence Shelters and Substance Use Rehabilitation Programs, working with survivors of human trafficking, domestic violence, and substance use, including members of the LGBTQIA+ and HIV+ communities. She currently provides therapy to children and families both in-home and in domestic violence shelters.
NRFi's Founder, Dr. Brenna Bray, holds Ph.D. in Biomedical Sciences and Neuroscience and received postdoctoral training in Complementary and Integrative Health and Eating Disorders at the National University of Natural Medicine (NUNM) and Helfgott Research Institute with federal funding from the National Institute of Health (NIH) and the National Centers for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH). Dr. Bray's work and life are dedicated to using reserach to empower home for eating disorder experiences and treatments and for the social justice issues that often underpin binge eating.
Cory Richards is an internationally renowned author, photographer, athlete, and mental health advocate. He identifies his journey with mental health as being a significant part of his life, and openly shares his experiences to help others. His advocacy work garners millions of views online and through speaking engagements, where he emphasizes the importance of storytelling and internal narratives in shaping our life experiences. Cory is the founder, director, and CEO of Cory Richards Creative. His notable works include “The Color of Everything: A Journey to Quiet the Chaos Within” (2024) and the award-winning documentary “Cold” (2011).
Dr. Barnett is a dedicated naturopathic doctor (ND), health care provider and
consultant, and community health advocate who brings extensive experience in healthcare provision and consulting, business development and accounting, and community engagement to NRFi.
Dr. Barnett holds a Research Doctorate in Naturopathic Medicine, a Bachelor of Business Administration (B.B.A) in Marketing/Marketing Management, and a Bachelor of Science (BS) in Nutrition Sciences. Her diverse educational background underpins her holistic approach to health and wellness.
Alton Do is a seasoned financial professional with extensive experience in healthcare banking and business development that enable him to provide unique financial acumen to NRFi. Alton holds a B.A. in Business/Managerial Economics, which provides a strong foundation for his career in finance. He has extensive executive leadership in finance and currently acts as Vice President and Senior Healthcare Banker at PNC, a role he has held since 2022.
Dr. Heather Zwickey is a distinguished researcher, educator, and advocate in the fields of integrative medicine, nutrition, and mental health. Dr. Zwickey had made significant contributions to research and education through her work on the gut-brain axis, naturopathic interventions, and psycho-neuro-immunology, and through her founding roles at the Helfgott Research Institute and the National University of Natural Medicine (NUNM)'s Nutrition Graduate Program.
Amy Thurston holds a Master's in Public Health (MPH) focussing on Physical Activity & Healthy Lifestyles and licensure as a Registered Dietitian Nutritionist (RDN). She provides nutrition consultation & outreach coordination for the Colorado Department of Public Health & Environment’s Child and Adult Care Food Program, the University of Colorado Boulder, Denver Public Schools, The Food Bank for Larimer Country, and Briarwood Health Care Center.
Barbara Kalu provides pivotal leadership to our Researc Dissemination, Education & Outreach, Clinical Application, and Marketing, PR, & Social Media Teams at NourishED. She manages NRFi's Instagram, Facebook, and X.com accounts and leadsNRFi's educational outreach campaigns, which are responsible for reaching >5,000 new individuals per post, with >500 engagements per post. Barbara is also an invaluable Resarch Assistant and Contributor to our Envrionmental Factors and Treatment Barriers projects. We look forward to her co-first author and co-author publications, which are planned for submission in Winter, 2025.
Learn more about Barbara and find full citations for her to manuscripts in prep in her full bio page (linked here and below).
Rishi Lamichhane is a dedicated Research Assistant and Resident Biostatistician at NRFi, specializing in network mapping and mixed-methods analyses related to environmental factors in Binge Eating Disorder (BED). With a robust background in epidemiology, biostatistics, and global health, Rishi leverages his expertise in biometric data collection and data visualization tools (e.g., Python, Kumu, R, SPSS, ArcGIS) to advance public health research. Rishi will earn his BS in Public Health and Computer and Information Science in May, 2025 and go on to pursue his MS in Public Health and Epidemiology.
Learn more about Rishi and find full citations for his two first-author manuscripts in prep his full bio page (linked here and below).
Ariana Pizadeh, MS is a pivotal Research Assistant & Clinical Support Staff at NRFi. Ariana holds a MS in Addiction Research and Clinical Health (with a focus on Neuroscience) from Wake Forest University School of Medicine. This is complemented by a BS in Psychology from UNC-Chapel Hill, experience as a Research Program Assistant at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, and certification as a Neurosomatic Practitioner. In her research role, Ariana leads/co-leads our Somatosensory Processing and Interoception Research Teams. In her clinical role, Ariana contributes content to the NRFi Binge Eating Disorder textbook, workbook, and outreach applications.
Learn more about Ariana's manuscripts and work in her full bio page (link here & below).
Juliet Nadershahi is a pivotal Research Assistant & Clinical Support Staff at NRFi. Juliet Nadershahi is an MS candidate with a focus on psychometric testing, clinical mental health counseling, and neurodivergence. In her research role, Juliet leads/co-leads our neurodivergent and interoceptive teams, where she explores neurodivergence, interoception, and alexithymia in Binge Eating Disorder research and pathology. Juliet also holds specialized psychometry certifications in Autism Diagnostic Observational Schedule (ADOS-2) and seizure recognition and shares these expertises with our clinical team.
Learn more about Juliet's manuscripts and work in her full bio page (link here & below).
Jan Rodriguez is an invaluable Research Assistant Lead on two separate projects and provides pivotal support to our IT, research dissemination, social media engagement, and electronic healthcare systems teams, with a focus on HIPAA compliance and security. At NRFi, Jan co-leads two Cross-Sectional, Mixed-Methods Electronic Survey Study Projects: (1) Understanding Eating Disorders in Undiagnosed Samples; (2) Twelve-Step Intervention Use in Binge Eating Disorder. In these projects, Jan applies his extensive background in electronic healthcare systems to create electronic surveys in the Research Electronic Database Capture System (REDCap).
Learn more about Jan in full bio page (link here & below).
Amy Thurston holds a Master's in Public Health (MPH) focussing on Physical Activity & Healthy Lifestyles and licensure as a Registered Dietitian Nutritionist (RDN). She provides nutrition consultation & outreach coordination for the Colorado Department of Public Health & Environment’s Child and Adult Care Food Program, the University of Colorado Boulder, Denver Public Schools, The Food Bank for Larimer Country, and Briarwood Health Care Center.
NRFi Handbook 2024 (pdf)
DownloadIf you are interested in partnering with NRFi - or know an organization or indivdiual that may be - please don't hesitate to reach out to us at [email protected].
NourishED Research Foundation, Inc. (NRFi) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit research organization that uses community-based research, health, education, and outreach activities to empower breakthroughs in the awareness, prevention, treatment outcomes, and lived experiences of eating disorders and other mental health disparities and bio-psycho-social-behavioral whole-health issues.
NourishED Research Foundation Inc., (NRFi) was founded in 2024 after an identified need and lack of federal funding prioritization for empirical investigation of new treatment options for binge-type eating disorders that are: 1) free or low cost; 2) sensitive to the unique experiences of individuals with BED; 3) inclusive to individuals of all demographics; and 4) easily accessible (e.g., community-based and/or virtually available) (Bray et al., 2024a,b,c,d).
At NRFi, we focus our activities in four basic areas:
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NRFi's Founder, Dr. Brenna Bray, holds Ph.D. in Biomedical Sciences and Neuroscience and received postdoctoral training in Complementary and Integrative Health and Eating Disorders at the National University of Natural Medicine (NUNM) and Helfgott Research Institute with federal funding from the National Institute of Health (NIH) and the National Centers for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH). Dr. Bray's work and life are dedicated to using reserach to empower home for eating disorder experiences and treatments and for the social justice issues that often underpin binge eating.
Copyright © 2025 NourishED Research Foundation, Inc. (NRFi) - All Rights Reserved.
The NourishED Research Foundation (NRFi) is a nonprofit, tax-exempt charitable organization (tax ID number: 99-2669462) under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. Donations are tax-deducatble as allowed by law.
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