Featured series 
Tag: Department of Epidemiology
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Nation & World
Pinpointing the higher cost of a healthy diet
The healthiest diets cost about $1.50 more per day than the least healthy diets, according to new research from Harvard School of Public Health. The finding is based on the most comprehensive examination to date comparing prices of healthy foods and diet patterns against less healthy ones.
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Nation & World
‘Whole grain’ not always healthy
U.S. Department of Agriculture’s 2010 Dietary Guidelines recommend that Americans consume at least three servings of whole-grain products daily, and the new U.S. national school lunch standards require that at least half of all grains be whole-grain rich. However, no single standard exists for defining any product as a “whole grain,” according to a Harvard…
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Nation & World
Vitamin D’s impact on infection
A study led by Harvard researchers of Mongolian schoolchildren supports the possibility that daily vitamin D supplementation can reduce the risk of respiratory infections in winter.
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Nation & World
Mammography tied to overdiagnosis
New Harvard School of Public Health research suggests that routine mammography screening — long viewed as an essential tool in detecting early breast cancers — may in fact lead to a significant amount of overdiagnosis of disease that would have proved harmless.
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Nation & World
Canned soup linked to higher BPA levels
A new study from researchers at the Harvard School of Public Health has found that the volunteers who consumed a serving of canned soup each day for five days had a more than 1,000 percent increase in urinary bisphenol A (BPA) concentrations compared with the group who consumed fresh soup daily for five days. The…
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Nation & World
Benefits of eating fish tip the scale
In a new, large-scale study from Harvard School of Public Health and Brigham and Women’s Hospital, researchers found no evidence that higher levels of mercury exposure were associated with higher risk of coronary heart disease, stroke, or total cardiovascular disease in two separate studies of U.S. adults.
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Nation & World
Dairy fat may help not harm
Scientists at the Harvard School of Public Health and collaborators from other institutions have identified a natural substance in dairy fat that may substantially reduce the risk of type 2 diabetes.
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Nation & World
Sick to death
Harvard School of Public Health researchers are mounting a major study of chronic disease in four African nations, which organizers hope will provide a foundation for understanding and treating chronic ailments like heart disease, diabetes, and cancer.
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Nation & World
Processed meats come with increased risk of heart disease, diabetes
In a new study, researchers from the Harvard School of Public Health (HSPH) have found that eating processed meat, such as bacon, sausage, or processed deli meats, led to a…
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Nation & World
60 minutes of exercise per day needed for middle-aged women to maintain weight
If a middle-aged or older woman with a normal body mass index wants to maintain her weight over an extended period, she must engage in the equivalent of 60 minutes…
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Nation & World
Replacing those saturated fats
In a new study, researchers at the Harvard School of Public Health find that replacing saturated fats with polyunsaturated ones is likely to help reduce the risk of heart disease.
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Nation & World
Polyunstaturated fats may cut risk of heart disease
Although for nearly 60 years people have been urged to decrease their consumption of saturated fats to prevent heart disease, there has been surprisingly little scientific evidence that doing so actually decreases the risk of coronary heart disease events
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Nation & World
Epstein-Barr Virus implicated as a cause of MS
Researchers from the Harvard School of Public Health, Walter Reed Army Institute of Research, and a team of collaborators have observed for the first time that the risk of multiple…
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Nation & World
Smoking and solid-fuel-burning in homes in China projected to cause millions of deaths
If current levels of smoking and biomass and coal fuel use in homes continues, between 2003 and 2033 there will be an estimated 65 million deaths from chronic obstructive pulmonary…
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Nation & World
Study shows benefits of eating fish greatly outweigh risks
Many studies have shown the nutritional benefits of eating fish (finfish or shellfish). Fish is high in protein and omega-3 fatty acids. But concerns have been raised in recent years…
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Nation & World
Fatty foods feed heart attacks, researchers say
Hold the french fries, doughnuts, and cookies, and save as many as 228,000 heart attacks and deaths from heart disease. That’s the message from a team of researchers at the…
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Nation & World
Stronger evidence found linking Epstein-Barr virus and risk of multiple sclerosis
Researchers from the Harvard School of Public Health, Kaiser Permanente, and a team of collaborators have found further evidence implicating the Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) as a possible contributory cause to…
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Nation & World
Low-dose aspirin shown to reduce risk of first stroke in women
The Women’s Health Study is a large, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial funded by both the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute and the National Cancer Institute to evaluate the benefits…
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Nation & World
New findings about protection against pneumococcal disease
Before the advent of the pneumococcal vaccine, known as Prevnar, S. pneumoniae caused millions of ear infections each year, half a million episodes of bacterial pneumonia, and life- threatening cases…
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Nation & World
One alcoholic drink per day improves cognitive function among older women
According to the study’s senior author, BWH’s Francine Grodstein, Sc.D., “Much evidence has demonstrated the heart benefits of light alcohol drinking, but less research has focused on cognitive functioning. While…
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Nation & World
Study finds that both weight and exercise are key to longevity
Over 115,000 participants who were free of cardiovascular disease or cancer, who were between the ages of 30 and 55 and had filled out biennial health and lifestyle questionnaires between…
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Nation & World
Walking improves cognitive functions in older women
In a study, elderly women who engaged in the most activity — for example, walking at least 6 hours per week — had a 20 percent decrease in risk of…
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Nation & World
Close adherence to traditional Mediterranean diet promotes longevity
The traditional Mediterranean diet features an abundance of vegetables, legumes, fruits, nuts and cereals and regular use of olive oil (monounsaturated fats), moderate amounts of fish and dairy products (mostly…
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Nation & World
Pregnant women carrying boys eat more than those carrying girls
Researchers looked at the diets of 244 pregnant American women via a food frequency questionnaire during the second trimester. They found that women expecting a boy had an eight percent…
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Nation & World
Study shows acrylamide in baked and fried foods does not increase risk of certain cancers in humans
Animal and laboratory studies in the past have indicated that acrylamide, a potentially carcinogenic substance, is found in elevated levels in certain foods, such as potato chips, French fries, cereals…
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Nation & World
Study finds frequent consumption of alcohol linked to lower risk of heart attack in men
Men who drank moderate amounts of alcoholic beverages three or more times a week had a risk of myocardial infarction 30 to 35 percent lower than nondrinkers. The observational study,…
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Nation & World
High levels of Epstein-Barr virus antibodies in women linked to risk of multiple sclerosis
Multiple sclerosis is a chronic degenerative disease of the central nervous system. Nationwide, there are an estimated 250,000 to 350,000 people with MS. Researchers have long wondered how MS develops…
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Nation & World
Snack foods may increase risk of age-related sight loss
Macular degeneration results from the malfunctioning or loss of function of photo-sensitive cells in the retina. According to the Macular Degeneration Foundation, more than 13 million people in the United…
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Nation & World
Green vegetables and fruits rich in vitamin C reduces risk of heart disease
Regularly eating fruits and vegetables, in particular green leafy vegetables and fruits that contain vitamin C, reduces the risk of coronary heart disease, according to researchers from the Harvard School…
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Nation & World
Caffeine linked to protection from Parkinson’s disease
Parkinson’s disease is a progressive nervous disease occurring generally after age 50. It destroys brain cells that produce dopamine and is characterized by muscular tremor, slowing of movement, weakness and…