Harness Big Data for Health, Well Being and the Environment

UNC Study: Improvements in WIC packaging led to overall food choice improvements

An improvement in the food choices and nutritional content of WIC (Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children), packages has produced analogous changes in overall food purchase habits... Read more »

New research on global surface ozone levels highlights regions, populations most affected by air pollution

February 7, 2018 Dr. Joseph Pinto is a co-author of an international Tropospheric Ozone Assessment Report that presents analyses of ozone levels around the world. The research was led by the universities of Leicester and Edinburg and 12 other institutions.

UNC study links low carbohydrate intake to increased risk of birth defects

January 25, 2018 Women who are pregnant or planning to become pregnant may want to avoid diets that reduce or eliminate carbohydrates, as such diets could increase the risk of having babies with neural tube birth defects, according to a study led by Dr. Tania Desrosiers.

MEASURE Evaluation project scores $232M for social science research, UNC’s largest-ever award

January 24, 2018 MEASURE Evaluation, a 5-year cooperative agreement funded by USAID and directed by Dr. Jim Thomas (left) recently received another $52 million in USAID support, making the project the recipient of UNC's largest-ever award — a total of $231.9 million.

UNC launches innovative Center on Financial Risk in Environmental Systems

December 4, 2017 UNC has launched the Center on Financial Risk, a partnership between the Gillings School's Department of Environmental Sciences and Engineering and the UNC Institute for the Environment. Dr. Greg Characklis, Philip C. Singer Distinguished Professor, is the center's director.

Study examines characteristics of deaths from drug overdose in North Carolina

October 17, 2017 According to study findings by maternal and child health doctoral student Anna Austin, death by drug overdose is an important and continuing public health concern in the U.S. The average self-inflicted drug overdose victim was 50 years old, female and white. In contrast, the average unintentional drug overdose victim was a 43-year-old male. Austin's findings were published Oct. 10 in the journal Drug and Alcohol Dependence.

UNC researchers receive $61M grant to identify effective treatments for asthma

October 2, 2017 Dr. Anastasia Ivanova will lead a five-year, $61 million study to identify more effective treatments for asthma attacks and will do so by combining two important tools -- precision medicine and 'big data' analysis. The work is funded by the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute.

Chair of maternal and child health to co-lead grant investigating sexual/gender identity, socioeconomic status and health

October 2, 2017 A new award co-funded by National Institute of Child Health and Human Development and the National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities, co-led by Dr. Carolyn Halpern, will explore how sexual orientation/gender identity and socioeconomic status intersect and contribute to health and disease across the life course.

Online calculator estimates the impact of changes in breastfeeding rates on population health

September 15, 2017 Dr. Alison Stuebe led a group of researchers who developed an online calculator to estimate the impact of changes in breastfeeding rates on population health. The research was published online Sept. 15 in the journal Breastfeeding Medicine.

Largest study of Hispanics/Latinos in US presents new findings about lung capacity in people of Dominican, Puerto Rican ethnicity

July 14, 2017 A new study led by Gillings School researchers has determined reference parameters for measuring lung capacity in non-Mexican American Hispanics. Accurate reference values for such measures are important for diagnosing common chronic lung diseases such as asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and predicting mortality.