Bio
Michael F. Bergeron, Ph.D., FACSM is the Executive Director of the National Youth Sports Health & Safety Institute and National Institute for Athletic Health & Performance, as well as a Professor in the Department of Pediatrics, Sanford School of Medicine of the University of South Dakota at the Sanford USD Medical Center. He also has an appointment as a Senior Scientist in Sanford Children’s Health Research Center. Internationally recognized for his research in exercise, heat stress, and youth athletic health and leadership in the sports medicine community, Dr. Bergeron is a Fellow and past Trustee of the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM), and is currently a member of the National Federation of State High School Associations Sports Medicine Advisory Committee. Dr. Bergeron serves as an Editorial Board member for the International Journal of Sport Nutrition and Exercise Metabolism and Journal of Athletic Training. He also serves as a clinical and scientific consultant to the WTA (Women’s Tennis Association) Professional Tour Medical Services.
Dr. Bergeron has participated recently as a leading faculty member and author on Department of Defense consensus panels and published papers on Exertional Heat Stroke: Return to Duty; Extreme Conditioning Programs; and Sickle Cell Trait – Mitigating Risks for Warfighters and Athletes. He has also worked with a number of junior, collegiate, and professional athletes on training and nutrition related to preparation, competition, and recovery strategies in the heat, with a particular emphasis on helping athletes to avoid exertional heat illness and injury.
Dr. Bergeron’s current research is focused on the effects of exercise in the heat and thermal strain on neuromuscular control and injury risk, as well as glycemic control in youth athletes with Type 1 diabetes. The institute is also examining thermoregulatory and other physiological and autonomic characteristics associated with mild traumatic brain injury and recovery.
