Increasing energy efficiency in buildings can save money—and it can also decrease the carbon emissions and air pollution that lead to climate change and health harms. But the climate and health benefits of reducing buildings’ energy consumption are rarely quantified. Now, researchers from Harvard Chan School, Boston University, and Oregon State University have developed a new method for calculating the health and climate impacts of these energy savings.
People who adhere to a Mediterranean lifestyle—which includes a diet rich in fruits, vegetables, and whole grains; healthy eating habits like limiting added salts and sugars; and habits promoting adequate rest, physical activity, and socialization—have a lower risk of all-cause and cancer mortality, according to a new study led by La Universidad Autónoma de Madrid and Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health.
Chronic exposure to fine particulate air pollutants and nitrogen dioxide may increase non-lung cancer risk in older adults, according to a study led by Harvard Chan School. In a cohort study of millions of Medicare beneficiaries, the researchers found that exposures to PM2.5 and NO2 over a 10-year period increased the risk of developing colorectal and prostate cancers. The researchers also found that even low levels of air pollution exposure may make people particularly susceptible to developing these cancers, in addition to breast and endometrial cancers.
Consuming omega-3 fatty acids—particularly alpha-linolenic acid, a nutrient found in foods including flaxseeds, walnuts, and chia, canola, and soybean oils—may help slow the progression of disease in patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), according to a new study led by Harvard Chan School.
Researchers from the Harvard Center for Population and Development Studies, Harvard Chan School, the University of the Witwatersrand, and the University of Cape Town have been awarded $27 million from the National Institute on Aging to further their collaborative program project Health and Aging in Africa: A Longitudinal Study in South Africa (HAALSI).
People who live in communities with higher proportions of Black and Hispanic/Latino residents are more likely to be exposed to harmful levels of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in their water supplies than people living in other communities, according to a new study led by researchers from Harvard Chan School.
In the wake of an opioid-related event, White patients received medication for opioid use disorder up to 80% more frequently than Black patients and up to 25% more frequently than Hispanic patients, according to a new study led by Harvard Chan School. Across racial groups, patients made a similar number of visits to health care providers in the six months following such an event—indicating that disparities in treatment are not explained by low contact with care.
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)’s Lead and Copper Drinking Water Rule Revision (LCRR) costs $335 million to implement while generating $9 billion in health benefits annually—far exceeding the EPA’s public statements that the LCRR generates $645 million in annual health benefits, according to a new study from researchers at Harvard Chan School.
Quitting smoking early was associated with higher survival rates following a lung cancer diagnosis, according to a new study led by researchers at Harvard Chan School. Compared to those who never smoked and were being treated for non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), current smokers had 68% higher mortality and former smokers had 26% higher mortality.
The Thich Nhat Hanh Center for Mindfulness in Public Health will launch April 26 at the Harvard Chan School. The Center’s mission is to empower people around the globe to live with purpose, equanimity, and joy through the practice of mindfulness; pursue evidence-based approaches to improve health and well-being through mindfulness; and educate and train the public in mindfulness.
