Thirza ia a PhD Candidate at the Department of Human Biology in Maastricht University.

Research: Her PhD project focuses on the link between the gut microbiota, its metabolites, and metabolic health in overweight individuals. Thirza finished on study in collaboration with AAK Netherlands which assessed if an edible oil varying in butyrate/hexanoate-enriched triglycerides content may increase short-chain fatty acids levels in the circulation and improve substrate and energy metabolism, in order to prevent and/or treat obesity. Currently, she and Colin van Kalkeren are conducting a 12 week intervention with a complex carbohyrdate mixture in context of a high protein diet with the aim to steer microbial fermentation and thereby improve metabolic, brain, and immune health (the DISTAL study).

Prior studies BSc in Life- and Biomedical Sciences, pre-med track at UCR, Middelburg (Summa Cum Laude, 2017) . Msc in Nutrition and Health and a specialization in Molecular Nutrition and Toxicology at WUR, Wageningen (Cum Laude, 2019).