Columbia University's Mailman School of Public Health

New computer model takes a page from weather forecasting to predict regional peaks in influenza outbreaks

Scientists have developed a system to predict the timing and severity of seasonal influenza outbreaks that could one day help health officials and the general public better prepare for them. The system adapts ...

Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes created Nov 26, 2012 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0 | with audio podcast

New study finds chronic fatigue syndrome not linked to XMRV and pMLV viruses

The causes of chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) have long eluded scientists. In 2009, a paper in the journal Science linked the syndrome—sometimes called myalgic encephalomyelitis (ME)—to infection with a mouse retrovirus called ...

Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes created Sep 18, 2012 | popularity 5 / 5 (5) | comments 2 | with audio podcast

New avian flu virus jumps from birds to mammals, kills New England's baby seals

A novel avian influenza virus has acquired the ability to infect aquatic mammals and was responsible for an outbreak of fatal pneumonia that recently struck harbor seals in New England, according to scientists at the Center ...

Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes created Jul 31, 2012 | popularity 5 / 5 (2) | comments 0 | with audio podcast

Obese men at high risk for prostate cancer even after benign biopsy

Obese men were more likely to have precancerous lesions detected in their benign prostate biopsies compared with non-obese men, and were at a greater risk for subsequently developing prostate cancer, according to researchers ...

Cancer created Apr 23, 2013 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0

HIV-infected moms who breastfeed exclusively have lower levels of virus in breast milk

HIV-infected women in sub-Saharan Africa who fed their babies exclusively with breast milk for more than the first four months of life had the lowest risk of transmitting the virus to their babies through breast milk, according ...

HIV & AIDS created Apr 17, 2013 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0 | with audio podcast

Prescription overdose rate reaches epidemic levels in NYC

The rate of drug overdose from prescription opioids increased seven-fold in New York City over a 16-year period and was concentrated especially among white residents of the city, according to latest research at Columbia University's ...

Medications created Feb 03, 2013 | popularity 3 / 5 (4) | comments 0 | with audio podcast

Doing the math to fight childhood obesity

Dieters often use online calorie calculators to stay true to their weight-loss plan. Translating the concept to the population health arena, researchers at Columbia University's Mailman School of Public Health created the ...

Overweight and Obesity created Aug 15, 2012 | popularity not rated yet | comments 4 | with audio podcast

BPA raises risk for childhood asthma

Researchers at the Columbia Center for Children's Environmental Health at the Mailman School of Public Health are the first to report an association between early childhood exposure to the chemical bisphenol A (BPA) and an ...

Immunology created Mar 01, 2013 | popularity 5 / 5 (1) | comments 0

Does winning an Emmy or an election mean you will live longer than those you beat?

Research has long linked high socioeconomic status with better health and lower mortality. But what's remained unclear is whether this association has more to do with access to resources (education, wealth, career opportunity, ...

Health created Mar 11, 2013 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0

Air pollution primes children for asthma-related cockroach allergy

An allergic reaction to cockroaches is a major contributor to asthma in urban children, but new research suggests that the insects are just one part of a more complex story. Very early exposure to certain components of air ...

Immunology created Feb 06, 2013 | popularity 5 / 5 (1) | comments 0

Prenatal exposure to pesticide additive linked with childhood cough

Children exposed in the womb to the widely used pesticide additive piperonyl butoxide (PBO) have heightened risk of noninfectious cough at ages 5 and 6, according to researchers at the Columbia Center for Children's Environmental ...

Health created Sep 05, 2012 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0 | with audio podcast

Old age offers no protection from obesity's death grip

Obesity kills, giving rise to a host of fatal diseases. This much is well known. But when it comes to seniors, a slew of prominent research has reported an "obesity paradox" that says, at age 65 and older, having an elevated ...

Overweight and Obesity created Feb 05, 2013 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0

We're emotionally distant and that's just fine by me

When it comes to having a lasting and fulfilling relationship, common wisdom says that feeling close to your romantic partner is paramount. But a new study finds that it's not how close you feel that matters most, it's whether ...

Psychology & Psychiatry created Feb 13, 2013 | popularity 1 / 5 (1) | comments 0

Federal Safe Routes to School program reduces child injuries by more than 40 percent in New York City

The national Safe Routes to School (SRTS) program was funded by Congress in 2005 in an effort to create safe environments for American children to walk or bike to school. Has the program been effective? In New York City, ...

Pediatrics created Jan 14, 2013 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0

Children exposed to the common pollutant naphthalene show signs of chromosomal damage

According to a new study, children exposed to high levels of the common air pollutant naphthalene are at increased risk for chromosomal aberrations (CAs), which have been previously associated with cancer. These include chromosomal ...

Health created May 29, 2012 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0 | with audio podcast