Dariush Mozaffarian has always sought to forge new paths that aim to have meaningful scientific and public health impact.
Long an advocate for a more nourishing, equitable, and sustainable food system, he’s now in the vanguard of the fast-growing field of Food is Medicine, which recognizes the powerful impact of food on health and incorporates that science into therapeutic and preventive health care.
After eight years as dean of the Gerald J. and Dorothy R. Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy and one year as special advisor to the Tufts University provost, on July 1, Mozaffarian is stepping down from these roles to launch a new cross-university initiative that will be the first of its kind to focus on and lead the nation in advancing Food is Medicine. At the same time, the university has recognized him as a Tufts distinguished professor and dean emeritus.
“Dary brings superb credentials as an administrator, scientist, and educator as he prepares to lead on the university’s commitment to Food is Medicine,” said Provost and Senior Vice Provost ad interim Caroline Genco. “I’m confident that he will significantly advance this increasingly important area of science and policy—one that has tremendous potential to greatly improve the lives of all.”
In 2014, Mozaffarian was recruited to Tufts to lead the Friedman School as dean, focusing on its mission of producing trusted science, future leaders, and real-world impact through multidisciplinary scholarship, entrepreneurism, and external engagement. Some highlights of his decanal service include: the development of the school’s first grass-roots, comprehensive strategic plan; the creation of school’s five divisions and chairs; the establishment of multiple new faculty professorships and scholarships, which led to a doubling of the school’s endowment; and the creation of the Food and Nutrition Innovation Institute, today the largest academic/private-sector collaborative around food.
Under his tenure, the school also grew its master’s degree programs, created a new Service Scholars program and the Ellie Block and Family Career Services Center, recruited and promoted multiple new primary faculty members, and launched strategic structural advances across all aspects of the school to increase diversity, equity, and inclusion.
In the tradition of nutrition scientist Jean Mayer, the 10th president of Tufts, the school under Mozaffarian’s leadership also expanded a flourishing public impact initiative, including the creation of the independent, nonpartisan Task Force on Hunger, Nutrition, and Health, which helped shape the historic 2022 White House Conference on Hunger, Nutrition and Health, the first such conference since 1969. Most recently, he was appointed to the President’s Council on Sports, Fitness and Nutrition.
Mozaffarian is also a professor of medicine at Tufts University School of Medicine and sees patients as an attending physician in cardiology at Tufts Medical Center.
Tufts Now spoke with Mozaffarian about his professional journey, the promise of Food is Medicine, and what may be on the horizon for Tufts.