Pregnant women who follow government seafood recommendations may be exposing their babies to too much toxic mercury, according to a new report from the Environmental Working Group (EWG). The study also found that women may not be getting enough healthy omega-3 fatty acids from the fish they choose. The authors call for guidelines to be more…

A new STAT-Harvard poll finds bipartisan support for new federal guidelines advising physicians to give patients with acute pain no more than a three-day supply of opioid painkillers. Seven in 10 Americans support the guidelines, which also advise doctors to try other treatment options before issuing prescriptions. About half of those surveyed believe that prescription…

Official counts of homicides by police seriously undercount incidents, according to a study from Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, but a relatively new national data system, currently in use in 32 states, could be a crucial tool for gathering more comprehensive information, say the researchers. The study, which was published online March 17,…

Legendary opera singer Plácido Domingo will be celebrated at Harvard with “Giving Voice: A Conversation with Plácido Domingo” on Thursday, April 14, 2016 at 4 p.m. at Sanders Theatre, 45 Quincy St., moderated by Tamar Herzog, Monroe Gutman Professor of Latin American Affairs and professor of Spanish and Portuguese history, and Anne Shreffler, James Edward…

How do you modernize an iconic but aging building into an inviting place where students, faculty, and the public gather together to learn? In the first of a series of talks on new visions for library spaces, architect Jim Eyre of WilkinsonEyre, London, presented his plan for the successful renovation of the Weston Library at…

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) may have underestimated the number of obese adults in the U.S. in its 2013 Obesity Prevalence Maps by at least 12 million because of reliance upon self-reported height and weight figures, according to a new study by researchers at Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Columbia…

Children of mothers who are low in vitamin D during early pregnancy may be at greater risk of developing multiple sclerosis (MS) in adulthood compared to children with mothers who have higher vitamin D levels, according to a new study led by researchers from Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. The study was published…

The International Criminal Court is saving civilian lives in multiple countries, according to research that provides the first quantitative evidence. The study by professors at Harvard University and Texas A&M, which will be featured in the summer issue of the journal International Organization, has drawn widespread attention from people on either side of a polarized…

Looking more closely at Europe may give us a better understanding of why Donald Trump has grown so popular in the U.S., suggests new research exploring the rise of neoliberalism abroad. Sociologists from Harvard and Boston University describe how citizens in countries which, like the U.S., rolled out neoliberal policies in the 1990s and 2000s,…

There will be a significant shortfall in the funding needed for HIV control in sub-Saharan Africa in the coming years and those countries with the highest HIV burden will be unable to meet their obligations on their own to sustain control efforts, according to a new study by researchers at Harvard T.H. Chan School of…

The Berkman Center for Internet & Society is pleased to announce that we’ve been selected as a mentoring organization for the Google Summer of Code (GSoC) 2016, a full-time internship which offers student developers stipends to contribute to free and open source projects. Over the coming weeks, we’ll be looking to select developer-interns to help implement…

Boston Public Schools are ahead of the curve when it comes to banning sales of sugary beverages, according to a new study led by researchers from Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. The study found that nearly all schools in the system were compliant with 2004 district guidelines eliminating sales of soda, fruit punch,…

The Harvard Graduate School of Education is pleased to announce that 20 Harvard College seniors have been selected as the first cohort of Harvard Teachers Fellows (HTF) — an innovative program designed to create pathways for Harvard College undergraduates to enter a teaching career. “I am absolutely delighted to welcome these 20 fellows to the…

Harvard Graduate School of Education Dean James Ryan announced today three postdoctoral fellows — Diamond Bravo, Mariam Durrani, and Jarvis Givens — as part of the newly developed Dean’s Postdoctoral Fellowship for Faculty Development. The fellowship, supported in part by the President’s Office, prepares outstanding recent doctoral graduates from diverse backgrounds for successful faculty careers…

The Harvard Graduate School of Education (HGSE) announced the selection of six cities for a new multiyear initiative – By All Means: Redesigning Education to Restore Opportunity – aimed at developing comprehensive child well-being and education systems that help eliminate the link between children’s socioeconomic status and achievement. By All Means will be operated by…

The $25,000 Goldsmith Prize for Investigative Reporting from the Shorenstein Center has been awarded to Margie Mason, Robin McDowell, Martha Mendoza, and Esther Htusan of The Associated Press for their investigative report “Seafood from Slaves.” The Associated Press uncovered extensive use of slave labor in the Thai seafood industry, which supplies major U.S. supermarkets, restaurants,…

Having a few abnormal looking moles may be a better indicator of melanoma risk than having a large number of moles, according to a new study led by Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health researcher Alan Geller. In examining 566 recently diagnosed melanoma patients, Geller and colleagues found that most had few moles and…

Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the leading cause of death in the U.S., and a healthy lifestyle is key to prevention. But the prevalence of healthy behaviors among U.S. adults is low. Current prevention strategies focus mainly on controlling CVD risk factors such as diabetes and hypertension with medication—as opposed to preventing them in the first…

What spurs the human immune system into action when there’s a parasitic infection in the gut? A new study finds that special cells called tuft cells play a big role—by “tasting” the presence of intestinal parasites and setting the immune system into motion against them. The finding, outlined in a paper published February 2, 2016…

The recipients of the 2016 Peter J. Gomes STB ’68 Memorial Honors transcend categories. From a Yale Law School graduate who uses storytelling to fight hate crimes against Muslims and Sikhs, to a naval officer who advocates for peace, this year’s group boldly crosses boundaries to work for a better world. “The 2016 Gomes honorees…

A new NPR / Robert Wood Johnson Foundation / Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health poll finds that although a majority of Americans are satisfied with the health care they receive, many still experience significant problems with health care costs, insurance coverage, and accessing care when they need it. While a strong majority of…

The Afro-Latin American Research Institute at the Hutchins Center for African & African American Research at Harvard University announced its first class for the Mark Claster Mamolen Dissertation Workshop on Afro-Latin American Studies. Selected from a pool of 52 applicants from universities and research institutions in Europe (Spain, France, United Kingdom), Canada, the United States,…

Harvard’s Institute of Politics (IOP) kicked off the spring 2016 semester with its biannual open house event. Undergraduates filled the halls of the JFK Jr. Forum at Harvard Kennedy School, looking to register for programming and catch a preview of the year to come. Students were greeted with patriotic decorations and tri-fold project boards, which…

John Quelch is an ambassador for public health in the business world. A professor at Harvard’s business and public health Schools who holds master’s degrees from both, Quelch told an audience at a recent event discussing his new book “Consumers, Corporations, and Public Health” that he believes both fields can inform and benefit the other.…

In his book “Being Mortal,” Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health Professor Atul Gawande explored how conversations between patients and doctors can make end-of-life care more meaningful. In an effort to bring this message to a broader audience, the California Health Care Foundation (CHCF) and the John and Wauna Harman Foundation organized a series…

The clearing of tropical forests to make way for development is creating environmental conditions that are boosting the spread of diseases such as malaria and dengue fever, according to a growing body of scientific evidence. A February 23, 2016 article in E360 Digest, a publication of the Yale University School of Forestry & Environmental Studies,…

Antenatal (ANC) and postnatal (PNC) care for women—crucial for ensuring healthy pregnancies, safe deliveries, and healthy mothers and babies—is the focus of several new studies involving researchers at Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. The four studies, published in the March 2016 issue of the British Journal of Obstetrics & Gynecology (BJOG), examined topics…

Bed bugs found in homes in Cincinnati and throughout Michigan were recently found to be highly resistant to neonicotinoid insecticides, which are widely used to tamp down infestations. According to Richard Pollack, an entomologist and instructor at Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health who was not involved in the study, it’s not unexpected for…

A proposal from the U.S. Office of Housing and Urban Development to make all of the nation’s public housing smoke-free represents a “an unparalleled opportunity” to improve the health of millions of low-income individuals, according to an article co-authored by experts at Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health and Boston University. In a February…

The current presidential candidates “have precious little to say” about some of the most compelling challenges relating to the nation’s health—such as the fact that Americans are living shorter lives and experiencing poorer health than people in many other countries, even though the U.S. spends more on health care than any other country, according to…