Sandraluz Lara-Cinisomo, PhD (she/her/ella) is an associate professor at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. Originally from Mexico, she grew up in South Central Los Angeles and speaks Spanish as her first language. Lara-Cinisomo is a trailblazer as a first-generation college graduate, having earned her bachelor’s degree from California State University, Northridge, followed by a master’s from Harvard University and a doctorate from Columbia University.
Her research is dedicated to addressing mental health disparities among women and mothers, with a particular focus on racial and ethnic minorities, including Latinas. Lara-Cinisomo's work is grounded in a comprehensive framework that considers psychosocial, cultural, structural, and physiological factors. She takes an interdisciplinary approach to explore how these contextual features contribute to mental health challenges and disparities in her target populations.
In her investigations, Lara-Cinisomo has delved into biomarkers, including cortisol and oxytocin, associated with perinatal depression and anxiety. She has also utilized functional magnetic resonance imaging to study pain responses among postpartum women, comparing those with and without depression. Recently, her research examined factors linked to depression in racially diverse women with gestational diabetes mellitus.
Her groundbreaking work has garnered support from prestigious sources, including the National Institutes of Health, various foundations, and other institutions.