Elissa Epel, Ph.D.
Professor
Department of Psychiatry
University of California, San Francisco
Dr. Epel’s research aims to elucidate mechanisms of healthy aging and to apply this basic science to scalable interventions that can reach vulnerable populations. She is the director of the Aging, Metabolism, and Emotions Center and the Center for Obesity Assessment, Study & Treatment (COAST), and associate director of the Center for Health and Community. She studies psychological, social, and behavioral pathways underlying chronic psychological stress and stress resilience that impact cellular aging.
Furthermore, she also studies the interconnections between stress, addiction, eating, and metabolic health. With her collaborators, she is conducting clinical trials to examine the effect of self-regulation and mindfulness training programs on cellular aging, weight, diet, and glucose control. Dr. Epel studied psychology and psychobiology at Stanford (BA) and clinical and health psychology at Yale (Ph.D.). Dr. Epel has received several awards, including the APA Early Career Award, the Academy of Behavioral Medicine Research Neal Miller Young Investigator Award, and the 2017 Silver Innovator Award from the Alliance for Aging Research. Her research has been featured in venues such as TEDMED, NBC’s Today Show, and many science documentaries. She co-authored “The Telomere Effect” (2017) with Elizabeth Blackburn, Ph.D., an NYT bestseller under the category of science.