Health ‘It’s much more harmful than we thought, and its mortality burden has been seriously underestimated’ Maya Brownstein Harvard Chan School Communications November 23, 2023 5 min read Study finds particulate air pollutants from coal-fired power plants may be twice as deadly as that from other sources Exposure to fine particulate air pollutants from coal-fired power plants (coal PM2.5) is associated with a risk of mortality more than double that of exposure to PM2.5 from...

Health Uncovering a culprit behind the itch Ekaterina Pesheva HMS Communications November 22, 2023 7 min read Scientists identify common microbe that activates nerve cells in the skin, igniting the urge to scratch Scientists at Harvard Medical School have shown for the first time that a common skin bacterium — Staphylococcus aureus — can cause itch by acting directly on nerve cells. The findings, based on research in mice and in human cells, were reported Wednesday in Cell. The...

Health Smart trackers may predict health risks in older adults BWH Communications November 20, 2023 3 min read Researchers find wearable devices detect circadian disturbances associated with age-related decline Wearable devices that measure daily patterns of circadian rest-activity rhythms may be able to predict frailty-related health risks more than six years before an incident occurs, according to a new study out of Harvard-affiliated Brigham and Women’s Hospital. The results are published in Nature Communications. Frailty, or...

File photo by Stephanie Mitchell/Harvard Staff Photographer Health ‘When you’re with a patient … their suffering counts more than your suffering’ Alvin Powell Harvard Staff Writer November 16, 2023 6 min read Symposium honoring late global health pioneer Paul Farmer reflects on achievements, purpose, influence of Haiti Grief fades, and what remained on Monday in a Harvard Medical School conference room was clarity of purpose: to provide healthcare to the world’s poor, to expand capacity...

Health ‘There’s no treatment if you don’t know what you’re treating’ Patricia Musolino, an assistant professor of neurology at Harvard Medical School, and David Sweetser, principal investigator of the Undiagnosed Diseases Network at MGH, traced a baffling smooth-muscle disorder that had affected a teen’s body since birth. Kris Snibbe/Harvard Staff Photographer Alvin Powell Harvard Staff Writer November 14, 2023 long read Network of medical detectives solves genomic mystery of boy plagued by series of life-threatening,...

Health U.S. men die nearly six years before women, reflecting largest gap since 1996 Victoria Colliver UCSF Communications November 13, 2023 3 min read Analysis finds COVID-19 and ‘deaths of despair’ behind trend that has been growing since 2010 We’ve known for more than a century that women outlive men. But new research led by Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health and University of California, San Francisco, shows that, at least in the United States,...

Health Benefits of work-life balance extend to heart health, study suggests Maya Brownstein Harvard Chan School Communications November 8, 2023 4 min read Intervention benefits older, lower-wage workers at higher risk, novel Chan School study finds Increasing workplace flexibility may lower employees’ risk of cardiovascular disease, according to a new study led by Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health and Penn State University. In workplaces that implemented interventions designed to reduce conflict between employees’...

Health Waistline growing? Eat more veggies — but not this kind. Anna Lamb Harvard Staff Writer November 7, 2023 3 min read Study adds starchy variety to list of culprits contributing to middle-age weight gain Most know indulging in cookies and cakes, soda, and white bread can accelerate weight gain in middle age. New research suggests adding another culprit to the list: starchy vegetables. A study published in The BMJ earlier this fall finds that...

Health Research shows working out gets inflammation-fighting T cells moving Ekaterina Pesheva HMS Communications November 3, 2023 6 min read Activated by regular exercise, immune cells in muscles found to fend off inflammation, enhance endurance in mice The connection between exercise and inflammation has captivated the imagination of researchers ever since an early 20th-century study showed a spike of white cells in the blood of Boston marathon runners following the race. Now, a new Harvard Medical School...

Professor of Psychology Mark L. Hatzenbuehler teaches a course on stigmas, asking students to choose a stigma for a semester-long investigation. Kris Snibbe/Harvard Staff Photographer Health How being stigmatized can harm health Christy DeSmith Harvard Staff Writer October 24, 2023 6 min read Course examines wide-ranging problem that touches on sexuality, body weight, immigration, and poverty “A disease like any other.” This refrain, popularized by mental-health advocates in the late 20th century, was meant to...