I am a statistician working on the Southampton Women’s Survey. With so much information being collected in the Survey, it is a huge task to make it ready and available for analysis. I therefore work closely with data managers to ensure this important scientific resource can be used in the most efficient way possible. I also conduct many of the analyses that are required, in areas such as food and nutrition, bone health and growth. I used the Southampton Women’s Survey data in my PhD, where I applied statistical techniques to characterise dietary patterns amongst the women in the pre-pregnancy cohort. I am now doing further research in this area. Since I was aged 20-34 and living in Southampton at the time of the pre-pregnancy phase of the study, I was recruited to be a participant and am therefore often in the unusual position of analysing data to which I have contributed!