Jason Block – Harvard Center for Population and Development Studies

February 10, 2022February 10, 2022

Cohort study compares new symptoms months after testing either positive or negative for SARS-CoV-2

New symptoms can occur following a novel coronavirus infection, but are they occuring more than among those who tested negative for infection? This cohort study analyzed the electronic health records of hundreds of thousands of people (under age 20 and over age 20; nonhospitalized, hospitalized, and hospitalized and ventillated) who had a medical encounter between March–December, 2020; the researchers looked for new symptoms that were present 31–150 days after testing…

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April 30, 2021November 17, 2021

The dangers of ignoring the other epidemic during the COVID-19 pandemic

Jason Block contributes his public health expertise to this op-ed in The Washington Post on the acute (and chronic) risks of ignoring the obesity issue in the U.S. “The reason obesity is so stigmatized is that people think of weight as a choice . . . It’s especially unfair when we have a society that makes opportunities to gain weight so ubiquitous.”

May 21, 2020March 8, 2024

Ethical considerations of food and beverage warnings; weighing the pros and cons

Harvard Bell Fellow Anna Grummon, PhD, and colleagues (including Harvard Pop Center faculty members Jason Block and Sara Bleich) evaluate the ethical strengths and weaknesses of food and beverage warnings (aimed to help prevent obesity and improve health) by looking through the lens of a public health ethics framework. Their findings are published in the journal Physiology & Behavior. Other authors of the study include: Marissa Hall, Eric Rimm, Lindsey…

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December 10, 2015February 14, 2024

Eliminating ‘food deserts’ not a panacea for improving diet quality & reducing disparities

Harvard Pop Center faculty members Jason Block, MD, and SV Subramanian (Subu), PhD, have co-authored a paper published in PLOS Medicine that suggests that when it comes reducing dietary disparities and improving dietary quality in the U.S. there are more effective strategies than increasing access to healthy foods (eliminating ‘food deserts’). Learn more in this Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health news post, in this piece on MedicalDaily.com and…

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December 1, 2015March 5, 2024

Ashish Jha, Jason Block in Vox on patient care in hospitals on weekends & holidays

Harvard Pop Center faculty members Ashish Jha, MD, and Jason Block, MD, comment on the challenges that patients can face when in need of hospital care on the weekends and holidays in this Vox article.

May 19, 2015November 15, 2023

Starbucks’ mini-size Frappuccino is step in right direction

Harvard Pop Center faculty member Jason Block, MD, MPH, commented on the smaller-sized offering by Starbucks in this livescience piece, which received attention in Huffington Post and Fox News.

January 9, 2015November 15, 2023

Does income level have impact on one’s response to calorie menu labeling?

Harvard Pop Center affiliated faculty member Jason Block, MD, MPH, and former Harvard RWJF scholar Christina Roberto, PhD, have published a Reply in JAMA in response to a letter that raises the issue of calorie labeling across socioeconomic backgrounds. The letter was in response to their September 3 Viewpoint entitled “Potential Benefits of Calorie Labeling in Restaurants.”