Ami Zota

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Ami Zota is an Associate Professor in the Department of Environmental & Occupational Health at the George Washington University Milken School of Public Health. Dr. Zota’s work seeks to secure environmental justice and improve health equity through advancements in science, policy, and clinical practice. Her research identifies novel pathways linking social disparities, environmental exposures, and reproductive and children’s health. She received a career development award from the National Institutes of Health for her research on environmental health disparities and was recently recognized as a Pioneer Under 40 in Environmental Public Health by the Collaborative on Health and the Environment. She is currently an Associate Editor of Journal of Exposure Science and Environmental Epidemiology and on the Editorial Boards of Environmental Health Perspectives and Environmental Epigenetics.

Dr. Zota is equally committed to developing innovative approaches for science translation so that her research can more effectively be used to inform individual and collective decision-making. Her research has been featured in high-impact national and international media publications including the Washington Post, LA Times, USA Today, Huffington Post, and the Atlantic Monthly. She has helped shape health and safety standards for consumer product chemicals by participating in legislative briefings, providing technical assistance to the NGO community, and communicating science through mainstream and social media outlets.

She received her masters and doctorate in environmental health at the Harvard School of Public Health and then completed postdoctoral fellowships at Silent Spring Institute and UCSF Program on Reproductive Health.

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Expertise

Expertise:

Environmental and Occupational Health

Environmental Health Policy

Epidemiology

Health Disparities

Women's Health

Children's Health

Education:

Bachelor of Science in Public Health in Environmental Science & Engineering, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, 1999

Master of Science Environmental Health, Harvard School of Public Health, 2003

Doctor of Science Environmental Health, Harvard School of Public Health 2007

University Affiliations:

Food Institute, George Washington University
Jacobs Institute of Women’s Health, Milken Institute School of Public Health

Public Health Practice:

Dr. Zota is committed to improving translation of scientific findings in ways that promote greater public understanding and social change. She serves on the science advisory boards of the Breast Cancer Fund, which focuses on exposing and eliminating the environmental causes of breast cancer, and the California Healthy Nail Salon Collaborative, which works to improve the health, safety, and rights of the nail and beauty care workforce. Zota was formerly a Science Communication Fellow for Environmental Health News and a National Fellow of the Environmental Leadership Program, which strives to increase diversity in the environmental field.

Service to Non-Governmental Organizations:

2018-present: Science Advisory Board Member, Science Communication Network
2014-present: Science Advisory Committee Member, Women’s Voices for the Earth
2013: Report Reviewer, Women’s Voices for the Earth
2010-2011: Board of Directors, Women’s Voices for the Earth
2010-present: Research Advisory Committee Member, California Nail Salon Collaborative
2010-present: Science Advisory Panel Member, Breast Cancer Fund
2006-2009: Advisory Board Member of the New England Regional Network – Environmental Leadership Program Testimonies and Briefings
2016: Congressional Briefing on on Federal Cosmetic Safety Reform, Washington DC. “Scientific Concern Over Chemicals in Personal Care Products” (invited presenter). Briefing organized by Campaign for Safe Cosmetics, Breast Cancer Fund, and American Sustainable Business Council
2014: Briefing for Consumer Product Safety Commission Staff, Washington DC. “Public Health Concerns of Flame Retardants Used in Consumer Products” (invited presenter). Briefing organized by the Natural Resource Defense Council.
2013: Briefing for California Legislators and Legislative Staff, Sacramento, CA. “Flame Retardants: Gaining Clarity on a Complex Issue” (invited presenter). Briefing organized by Californians for Toxic-Free Fire Safety
2012: California State Assembly (Standing Committee on Environmental Safety and Toxic Materials). Informational Hearing on California’s Furniture Flammability Standards and the Safety of Flame Retardant Chemicals, Sacramento, CA. “Public Health Consequences of Flame Retardant Chemicals” (invited testimony)

Teaching:

Course Director, Environmental and Occupational Epidemiology (2U online), George Washington University

Course Instructor, Environmental and Occupational Epidemiology, George Washington University (core course for the MPH degree in Environmental and Occupational Health)

Community Service:

National Service:

Associate Editor, Journal of Exposure Science and Environmental Epidemiology

Editorial Review Board, Environmental Health Perspectives

Editorial Board, Environmental Epigenetics

Project TENDR (Targeting Environmental Neuro-Developmental Risks), Phthalates Working Group

Research

Research:

Dr. Zota's research examines the interplay between environmental chemicals exposures and psychosocial stressors on maternal and child health with an emphasis on overlapping biological pathways. She has received research funding from the National Institutes of Health, the Passport Foundation, and Forsythia Foundation among others. Much of her current research involves human exposure science and reproductive and perinatal epidemiology studies of endocrine disrupting chemicals, such as flame retardants, phthalates, and perfluoroalkyl chemicals.

Featured Areas of Research

Environmental Injustice of Beauty
Food Systems and Environmental Toxins
Environmental Toxins in the Inoor Environment
Children's Health and Early Life Exposures to Endocrine Disrupters
Women's Health and the Environment

Environmental Injustice of Beauty

Peer-reviewed publications

Zota AR, Shamasunder B. The environmental injustice of beauty: framing chemical exposures from beauty products as a health disparities concern. Am J Obstet Gynecol. 2017; 217:418 e1- e6. doi: 10.1016/j.ajog.2017.07.020. Epub 2017/08/20.
Branch F, Woodruff TJ, Mitro SD, Zota AR. Vaginal douching and racial/ethnic disparities in phthalates exposures among reproductive-aged women: National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey 2001-2004. Environ Health. 2015; 14:1-8. doi: 10.1186/s12940-015-0043-6.

Lay Audience Summaries (Newsletters or Factsheets)

“The Environmental Injustice of Beauty”, Partnerships in Environmental Public Health Newsletter, National Institutes of Environmental Health Sciences. https://www.niehs.nih.gov/research/supported/translational/peph/currentissue/lists/12_17/index.cfm

Multimedia Content: Podcasts and Webinars

“Forging New Intersections between Environmental and Reproductive Justice using Research and Advocacy.” [National webinar organized by the Collaborative on Health and the Environment (CHE-Pioneers Under 40)] https://www.healthandenvironment.org/webinars/96379

Media/Popular Press

Food Systems and Environmental Toxins

Peer-reviewed publications

Zota AR, Phillips CA, Mitro SD. Recent Fast Food Consumption and Bisphenol A and Phthalates Exposures among the U.S. Population in NHANES, 2003-2010. Environ Health Perspect. 2016; 124:1521-8. doi: 10.1289/ehp.1510803. Epub 2016/04/14.
Varshavsky J*., Morello-Frosch R.A., Woodruff T.J., Zota A.R. Dietary sources of cumulative phthalates exposures among the U.S. general population 2005-2014. Environment International 2018 (accepted; in press)

Lay Audience Summaries (Newsletters or Factsheets)

Wendee Nicole. “Phthalates in Fast Food: A Potential Dietary Source of Exposure”. Environmental Health Perspectives Science Selection. https://ehp.niehs.nih.gov/124-A191/

Media/Popular Press

Podcasts and Videos
- “Plasticizers, fast food, and your urine” with Ami Zota. You Make Me Sick Podcast Series, Environmental Defense Fund. http://blogs.edf.org/health/2017/04/28/edf-health-podcast-you-make-me-sick-plasticizers-fast-food-and-your-urine/
TV
- Today Show: http://mms.tveyes.com/MediaCenterPlayer.aspx?u=aHR0cDovL21lZGlhY2VudGVyLnR2ZXllcy5jb20vZG93bmxvYWRnYXRld2F5LmFzcHg/VXNlcklEPTI2NDU1MCZNRElEPTYwMjgyNjImTURTZWVkPTI2MzcmVHlwZT1NZWRpYQ%3D%3D
- FOX News Channel 5: http://www.fox5dc.com/health/study-eating-fast-food-may-expose-people-to-harmful-chemical
Digital Press
- Washington Post
- TIME Magazine
- Newsweek
- Civil Eats

Environmental Toxins in the Indoor Environment

Peer-reviewed publications

Zota AR, Singla V, Adamkiewicz G, Mitro SD, Dodson RE. Reducing chemical exposures at home: opportunities for action. J Epidemiol Community Health. 2017. doi: 10.1136/jech-2016-208676. Epub 2017/08/02.
Mitro SD, Dodson RE, Singla V, Adamkiewicz G, Elmi AF, Tilly MK, et al. Consumer Product Chemicals in Indoor Dust: A Quantitative Meta-analysis of U.S. Studies. Environ Sci Technol. 2016; 50:10661-72. doi: 10.1021/acs.est.6b02023. Epub 2016/09/15.
Zota AR, Riederer AM, Ettinger AS, Schaider LA, Shine JP, Amarasiriwardena CJ, et al. Associations between metals in residential environmental media and exposure biomarkers over time in infants living near a mining-impacted site. J Expo Sci Environ Epidemiol. 2016; 26:510-9. doi: 10.1038/jes.2015.76. Epub 2015/12/10.
Adamkiewicz G, Zota AR, Fabian MP, Chahine T, Julien R, Spengler JD, et al. Moving environmental justice indoors: understanding structural influences on residential exposure patterns in low-income communities. Am J Public Health. 2011; 101 Suppl 1:S238-45. doi: 10.2105/AJPH.2011.300119. Epub 2011/08/11.

Lay Audience Summaries (Newsletters or Factsheets)

Not Just Dirt: Toxic Chemicals in Indoor Dust (project website): https://www.nrdc.org/resources/not-just-dirt-toxic-chemicals-indoor-dust
Not Just Dirt: Toxic Chemicals in Indoor Dust (fact sheet): https://www.nrdc.org/sites/default/files/not-just-dirt-toxic-chemicals-indoor-dust-ib.pdf
NIH newsletter: https://newsinhealth.nih.gov/2016/12/making-healthier-home

Media/Popular Press

Washington Post
TIME Magazine
Newsweek
The Guardian
CNN International

Children’s Health and Early Life Exposures to Endocrine Disrupters

Peer-reviewed publications

VanNoy B.N.*, Lam J., Zota A.R.^& Breastfeeding as a predictor of serum concentrations of per- and polyfluorinated alkyl substances in reproductive-aged women and young children: A systematic review. (accepted; Current Environmental Health Reports).
Parry E, Zota AR, Park JS, Woodruff TJ. Polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) and hydroxylated PBDE metabolites (OH-PBDEs): A six-year temporal trend in Northern California pregnant women. Chemosphere. 2018; 195:777-83. doi: 10.1016/j.chemosphere.2017.12.065. Epub 2017/12/11.
Zota AR, Mitro SD, Robinson JF, Hamilton EG, Park J-S, Parry E, et al. Polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) and hydroxylated PBDE metabolites (OH-PBDEs) in maternal and fetal tissues, and associations with fetal cytochrome P450 gene expression. Environ Int. 2018; 112:269-78. doi: 10.1016/j.envint.2017.12.030.
Mitro SD, Johnson T, Zota AR. Cumulative Chemical Exposures During Pregnancy and Early Development. Curr Environ Health Rep. 2015; 2:367-78. doi: 10.1007/s40572-015-0064-x. Epub 2015/09/04.

Media/Popular Press

Podcasts and Videos
- “Windows of Susceptibility” with Ami Zota. Environmental Chat Podcast Series, Partnerships for Environmental Public Health, National Institute of Environmental Health Science. https://www.niehs.nih.gov/research/supported/translational/peph/podcasts/susceptibility/index.cfm

Women’s Health and the Environment

Peer-reviewed publications

Zota A.R., Geller R.J., Romano L.E., Coleman-Phox K., Adler N.E., Parry E., Wang M., Elmi A.F., Laraia B., Epel E. E. Association between persistent endocrine-disrupting chemicals (PBDEs, OH-PBDEs, PCBs, and PFASs) and biomarkers of inflammation and cellular aging during pregnancy and postpartum. Environment International 2018 (accepted; in press).
James-Todd TM, Chiu YH, Zota AR. Racial/ethnic disparities in environmental endocrine disrupting chemicals and women's reproductive health outcomes: epidemiological examples across the life course. Curr Epidemiol Rep. 2016; 3:161-80. doi: 10.1007/s40471-016-0073-9. Epub 2017/05/13.

Media/Popular Press

Podcasts and Videos
- “Forging New Intersections between Environmental and Reproductive Justice using Research and Advocacy.” [National webinar organized by the Collaborative on Health and the Environment (CHE-Pioneers Under 40)] https://www.healthandenvironment.org/webinars/96379

Publications

Publications:

• Zota AR, Singla V, Adamkiewicz G, Mitro SD, Dodson RE. Reducing chemical exposures at home: opportunities for action. J Epidemiol Community Health. 2017. doi: 10.1136/jech-2016-208676. Epub 2017/08/02.
• Zota AR, Shamasunder B. The environmental injustice of beauty: framing chemical exposures from beauty products as a health disparities concern. Am J Obstet Gynecol. 2017; 217:418 e1- e6. doi: 10.1016/j.ajog.2017.07.020. Epub 2017/08/20.
• Zota AR, Shamasunder B. Re: The Environmental Injustice of Beauty. Am J Obstet Gynecol. 2017. doi: 10.1016/j.ajog.2017.11.573. Epub 2017/11/21.
• Nomura SJ, Robien K, Zota AR. Serum Folate, Vitamin B-12, Vitamin A, gamma-Tocopherol, alpha-Tocopherol, and Carotenoids Do Not Modify Associations between Cadmium Exposure and Leukocyte Telomere Length in the General US Adult Population. J Nutr. 2017; 147:538-48. doi: 10.3945/jn.116.243162. Epub 2017/03/10.
• Zota AR, Riederer AM, Ettinger AS, Schaider LA, Shine JP, Amarasiriwardena CJ, et al. Associations between metals in residential environmental media and exposure biomarkers over time in infants living near a mining-impacted site. J Expo Sci Environ Epidemiol. 2016; 26:510-9. doi: 10.1038/jes.2015.76. Epub 2015/12/10.
• Zota AR, Phillips CA, Mitro SD. Recent Fast Food Consumption and Bisphenol A and Phthalates Exposures among the U.S. Population in NHANES, 2003-2010. Environ Health Perspect. 2016; 124:1521-8. doi: 10.1289/ehp.1510803. Epub 2016/04/14.
• Varshavsky JR, Zota AR, Woodruff TJ. A Novel Method for Calculating Potency-Weighted Cumulative Phthalates Exposure with Implications for Identifying Racial/Ethnic Disparities among U.S. Reproductive-Aged Women in NHANES 2001-2012. Environ Sci Technol. 2016; 50:10616-24. doi: 10.1021/acs.est.6b00522. Epub 2016/09/01.
• Rehkopf DH, Needham BL, Lin J, Blackburn EH, Zota AR, Wojcicki JM, et al. Leukocyte Telomere Length in Relation to 17 Biomarkers of Cardiovascular Disease Risk: A Cross-Sectional Study of US Adults. PLoS Med. 2016; 13:e1002188. doi: 10.1371/journal.pmed.1002188. Epub 2016/11/30.
• Mitro SD, Dodson RE, Singla V, Adamkiewicz G, Elmi AF, Tilly MK, et al. Consumer Product Chemicals in Indoor Dust: A Quantitative Meta-analysis of U.S. Studies. Environ Sci Technol. 2016; 50:10661-72. doi: 10.1021/acs.est.6b02023. Epub 2016/09/15.
• Mitro SD, Dodson RE, Singla V, Adamkiewicz G, Elmi AF, Tilly MK, et al. Correction to Consumer Product Chemicals in Indoor Dust: A Quantitative Meta-Analysis of U.S. Studies. Environ Sci Technol. 2016; 50:13611. doi: 10.1021/acs.est.6b05530. Epub 2016/12/21.
• Mitro SD, Birnbaum LS, Needham BL, Zota AR. Cross-sectional Associations between Exposure to Persistent Organic Pollutants and Leukocyte Telomere Length among U.S. Adults in NHANES, 2001-2002. Environ Health Perspect. 2016; 124:651-8. doi: 10.1289/ehp.1510187. Epub 2015/10/10.
• James-Todd TM, Chiu YH, Zota AR. Racial/ethnic disparities in environmental endocrine disrupting chemicals and women's reproductive health outcomes: epidemiological examples across the life course. Curr Epidemiol Rep. 2016; 3:161-80. doi: 10.1007/s40471-016-0073-9. Epub 2017/05/13.
• Gerona RR, Pan J, Zota AR, Schwartz JM, Friesen M, Taylor JA, et al. Direct measurement of Bisphenol A (BPA), BPA glucuronide and BPA sulfate in a diverse and low-income population of pregnant women reveals high exposure, with potential implications for previous exposure estimates: a cross-sectional study. Environ Health. 2016; 15:50. doi: 10.1186/s12940-016-0131-2. Epub 2016/04/14.
• Zota AR, Needham BL, Blackburn EH, Lin J, Park SK, Rehkopf DH, et al. Associations of cadmium and lead exposure with leukocyte telomere length: findings from National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, 1999-2002. Am J Epidemiol. 2015; 181:127-36. doi: 10.1093/aje/kwu293. Epub 2014/12/10.
• Mitro SD, Zota AR. Vitamin D and uterine leiomyoma among a sample of US women: Findings from NHANES, 2001-2006. Reprod Toxicol. 2015; 57:81-6. doi: 10.1016/j.reprotox.2015.05. 013. Epub 2015/06/03.

• Mitro SD, Johnson T, Zota AR. Cumulative Chemical Exposures During Pregnancy and Early Development. Curr Environ Health Rep. 2015; 2:367-78. doi: 10.1007/s40572-015-0064-x. Epub 2015/09/04.
• Branch F, Woodruff TJ, Mitro SD, Zota AR. Vaginal douching and racial/ethnic disparities in phthalates exposures among reproductive-aged women: National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey 2001-2004. Environ Health. 2015; 14:1-8. doi: 10.1186/s12940-015-0043-6.
• Zota AR, Atchley D, Woodruff TJ. The Intrauterine Environment and Early Infancy. In: Landrigan P, Etzel R, editors. Children’s Environmental Health: Oxford University Press; 2014.
• Gore AC, Crews D, Doan LL, Merrill ML, Patisaul H, Zota A. Introduction to Endocrine-Disrupting Chemicals (EDCs): A Guide for Public Interest Organizations and Policy-Makers. A joint publication of the Endocrine Society and the International POPs Elimination Network (IPEN). 2014 Dec. 2014.
• Zota AR, Calafat AM, Woodruff TJ. Temporal trends in phthalate exposures: findings from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, 2001-2010. Environ Health Perspect. 2014; 122:235-41. doi: 10.1289/ehp.1306681. Epub 2014/01/15.
• Zota AR, Shenassa ED, Morello-Frosch R. Allostatic load amplifies the effect of blood lead levels on elevated blood pressure among middle-aged U.S. adults: a cross-sectional study. Environ Health. 2013; 12:64. doi: 10.1186/1476-069X-12-64.
• Zota AR, Linderholm L, Park JS, Petreas M, Guo T, Privalsky ML, et al. Temporal comparison of PBDEs, OH-PBDEs, PCBs, and OH-PCBs in the serum of second trimester pregnant women recruited from San Francisco General Hospital, California. Environ Sci Technol. 2013; 47:11776-84. doi: 10.1021/es402204y.
• Brown P, Brody JG, Morello-Frosch R, Tovar J, Zota AR, Rudel RA. Measuring the success of community science: the northern California Household Exposure Study. Environ Health Perspect. 2012;120(3):326-31. doi: 10.1289/ehp.1103734. Epub 2011/12/08.
• Morello-Frosch R, Brown P, Brody JG, Altman RA, Rudel RA, Zota A, et al. Experts, Ethics, and Environmental Justice: Communicating and Contesting Results from Personal Exposure Science. In: Ottinger G, Cohen B, editors. Technoscience and Environmental Justice: Expert Cultures in a Grassroots Movement. MIT Press; 2011.
• Zota A, Morello-Frosch R. Contribution to maternal and child health disparities. In: Nriagu J, editor. Encyclopedia of Environmental Health. 2011.
• Zota AR, Schaider LA, Ettinger AS, Wright RO, Shine JP, Spengler JD. Metal sources and exposures in the homes of young children living near a mining-impacted Superfund site. J Expo Sci Environ Epidemiol. 2011; 21:495-505. doi: 10.1038/jes.2011.21. Epub 2011/05/18.
• Zota AR, Park JS, Wang Y, Petreas M, Zoeller RT, Woodruff TJ. Polybrominated diphenyl ethers, hydroxylated polybrominated diphenyl ethers, and measures of thyroid function in second trimester pregnant women in California. Environ Sci Technol. 2011; 45:7896-905. doi: 10.1021/es200422b.
• Woodruff TJ, Zota AR, Schwartz JM. Environmental chemicals in pregnant women in the United States: NHANES 2003-2004. Environ Health Perspect. 2011; 119:878-85. doi: 10.1289/ehp.1002727. Epub 2011/01/14.
• Adams C, Brown P, Morello-Frosch R, Brody JG, Rudel R, Zota A, et al. Disentangling the exposure experience: the roles of community context and report-back of environmental exposure data. J Health Soc Behav. 2011;52(2):180-96. doi: 10.1177/0022146510395593. Epub 2011/06/16.
• Adamkiewicz G, Zota AR, Fabian MP, Chahine T, Julien R, Spengler JD, et al. Moving environmental justice indoors: understanding structural influences on residential exposure patterns in low-income communities. Am J Public Health. 2011; 101 Suppl 1:S238-45. doi: 10.2105/AJPH.2011.300119. Epub 2011/08/11.
• Zota AR, Aschengrau A, Rudel RA, Brody JG. Self-reported chemicals exposure, beliefs about disease causation, and risk of breast cancer in the Cape Cod Breast Cancer and Environment Study: a case-control study. Environmental Health. 2010; 9:40-. doi: 4010.1186/1476-069x-9-40.
• Zota AR, Adamkiewicz G, Morello-Frosch RA. Are PBDEs an environmental equity concern? Exposure disparities by socioeconomic status. Environ Sci Technol. 2010; 44:5691-2. doi: 10.1021/es101723d.
• Zota AR, Willis R, Jim R, Norris GA, Shine JP, Duvall RM, et al. Impact of Mine Waste on Airborne Respirable Particulates in Northeastern Oklahoma, United States. J Air Waste Manag Assoc. 2009;59(11):1347-57. doi: 10.3155/1047-3289.59.11.1347. Epub 2012/1/24.
• Zota AR, Ettinger AS, Bouchard M, Amarasiriwardena CJ, Schwartz J, Hu H, et al. Maternal blood manganese levels and infant birth weight. Epidemiology. 2009; 20:367-73. doi: 10.1097/EDE.0b013e31819b93c0.
• Brody JG, Morello-Frosch R, Zota A, Brown P, Perez C, Rudel RA. Linking exposure assessment science with policy objectives for environmental justice and breast cancer advocacy: the northern California household exposure study. Am J Public Health. 2009;99 Suppl 3:S600-9. doi: 10.2105/AJPH.2008.149088. Epub 2009/11/06.
• Ettinger AS, Zota AR, Amarasiriwardena CJ, Hopkins MR, Schwartz J, Hu H, et al. Maternal arsenic exposure and impaired glucose tolerance during pregnancy. Environ Health Perspect. 2009; 117:1059-64. doi: 10.1289/ehp0800533.
• Zota AR, Rudel RA, Morello-Frosch RA, Brody JG. Elevated house dust and serum concentrations of PBDEs in California: unintended consequences of furniture flammability standards? Environ Sci Technol. 2008; 42:8158-64. doi: 10.1021/es801792z.
• Zota A, Adamkiewicz G, Levy JI, Spengler JD. Ventilation in public housing: implications for indoor nitrogen dioxide concentrations. Indoor Air. 2005;15(6):393-401. doi: 10.1111/j.1600-0668.2005.00375.x. Epub 2005/11/05.
• Zota A. Operationalizing the Precautionary Principle: Adoption of an Early Warnings-Early Action System. In: Woomaw W, Susskind L, Kursak K, editors. Negotiating a Sustainable Future: Innovations in International Environmental Negotiations. Harvard Law School: PON Books; 2003.

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Ami R.

Zota, ScD, MS

Associate Professor

Ami Zota

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