Category: Features

A Closer Look at Obesity, Health Risks, and Mortality    Writing in the November 7, 2007, Journal of the American Medical Association, federal researchers concluded that being overweight isn’t associated with the chances of dying from heart disease or cancer. (1) Even more surprisingly, they found that overweight may be associated with lower risks of […] Continue reading

The New York City Board of Health’s decision to ban trans fats from restaurants may prevent thousands of premature deaths, and it serves as a model for other cities around the world, according to a leading authority on trans fats’ harmful health effects. “The New York City Board of Health deserves applause for its decision […] Continue reading

Testimony submitted at October 30, 2006 hearing before the New York City Board of Health by Dariush Mozaffarian, M.D., Dr.P.H., F.A.C.C.. F.A.H.A., Harvard Medical School and Harvard School of Public Health I am a cardiologist at Harvard Medical School and an epidemiologist at the Harvard School of Public Health. I would like to thank the […] Continue reading

Testimony submitted at October 30, 2006 hearing before the New York City Board of Health by Walter Willett, M.D., M.P.H., Dr. P.H., Departments of Epidemiology and Nutrition, Harvard School of Public Health First, I want to thank the New York City Department of Health for providing this opportunity to comment on the proposed restriction of […] Continue reading

Calling artificial trans fats “the most harmful nutrient in our diet,” two researchers from the Harvard School of Public Health testified in support of a proposed ban on trans fats in New York City restaurants. The measure, proposed by the New York City Dept. of Health and Mental Hygiene, would give restaurants six months to […] Continue reading

Removing trans fats from the industrial food supply could prevent tens of thousands of heart attacks and cardiac deaths each year in the U.S., according to researchers at the Harvard School of Public Health and Wageningen University. In a review article published in the New England Journal of Medicine on April 13, 2006,(1) the researchers […] Continue reading

Results from large, long Women’s Health Initiative Dietary Modification Trial shows no effect on heart disease, breast cancer, colorectal cancer, or weight. The low-fat, high-starch diet that was the focus of dietary advice during the 1990s-as reflected by the USDA food guide pyramid-is dying out. A growing body of evidence has been pointing to its […] Continue reading

In a survey released today, the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) documented the widespread sale of French fries high in trans fatty acids in the cafeterias of leading U.S. hospitals and in the cafeterias of some government agencies, including the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). “Unfortunately, this suggests that many hospitals pay […] Continue reading

Clearing up confusion around the vitamin supplement findings from the Women’s Health Initiative Dietary Modification Trial Many people were surprised and confused by the report from the Women’s Health Initiative Dietary Modification Trial (WHI) that vitamin D supplements had no apparent benefit for hip fracture or colon cancer risks.(1) In this study, over 36,000 women […] Continue reading