Related Topics
More drugs being approved for rare diseases in kids
A Harvard School of Public Health (HSPH) health policy expert says the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) should more closely monitor the increasing number of “orphan” drugs on the market, particularly those designed to treat rare diseases…
Prolonged childhood stress takes toll on developing brains that can last a lifetime
“Stress wears the body down,” HSPH Prof. Jack P. Shonkoff, director of the Center on the Developing Child at Harvard, told the Boston Globe. When the stress response system stays activated for long periods of time, the hormones…
Working healthy snacks into after-school programs
February 22, 2012 Nutritious snacks don’t have to bust budgets, Harvard School of Public Health (HSPH) researchers conclude in a new study that analyzed the cost of foods served in YMCA after-school programs in four U.S. cities. While…

One in ten children face elevated risk of abuse, future PTSD, due to gender nonconformity
For immediate release: Monday, February 20, 2012 Boston, MA — Children in the U.S. whose activity choices, interests, and pretend play before age 11 fall outside those typically expressed by their biological sex face increased risk of being…

Alumna hopes video will help stem the cholera tide
February 9, 2012 -- A new animated video about cholera—how people get infected, how it spreads, and how to treat it—is drawing attention from health workers around the globe. The video’s producer, Deborah Van Dyke, is a nurse practitioner…

Searching for answers to causes of childhood depression
February 1, 2012 Over the past decade, scientists have produced a flurry of studies exploring the role of genetic (nature) and environmental factors (nurture) in youth depression, but there has been little consensus on how depression is jointly impacted by…

PFCs, chemicals widespread in environment, linked to lowered immune response to childhood vaccinations
For immediate release: Tuesday, January 24, 2012 Boston, MA — A new study finds that perfluorinated compounds (PFCs), widely used in manufactured products such as non-stick cookware, waterproof clothing, and fast-food packaging, were associated with lowered immune response…

New epidemiology chair at HSPH hopes to continue department's legacy of discovery and training scientists to change the world
January 20, 2012 -- Michelle Williams, SM ’88, ScD ’91, began as Chair of the Department of Epidemiology and Stephen B. Kay Family Professor of Public Health at Harvard School of Public Health in August 2011. Previously a professor…

Mary Ellen Avery, pioneer in medicine and public health, dies at 84
December 8, 2011 -- Mary Ellen Avery, a major figure in Boston medicine and public health whose work while a research fellow at HSPH in the 1950s led to one of the most important strategies to improve care for…

Food fight: Pizza and spuds win, school kids lose
Blog post on the Huffington Post by HSPH's Walter Willett, November 23, 2011