Humans in Public Health – Details, episodes & analysis

The dangers of firearms are well understood, but their ammunition is the source of a little-known health threat: toxic lead. Brown doctoral student Christian Hoover studies the connection between guns and elevated blood lead levels in America’s children and adults. Host Megan Hall speaks with him about the results of the first national study of this problem, and his advice for gun owners on the healthiest way to minimize lead exposure.

In this summer replay of a previous episode, host Megan Hall speaks with Dr. Jud Brewer, associate professor of psychiatry at the Brown Medical School about anxiety. In uncertain times, how do we address fear and worry that grips us? How do we help our kids do the same?

When humanitarian catastrophes erupt around the world, it can be easy to feel overwhelmed by the scale of suffering. How do aid workers navigate the immense challenges in order to jump into action—juggling safety, equipment and logistics? Emergency doctors Craig Spencer and Adam Levine, veterans of public health disasters across the globe, join host Megan Hall to explain how this kind of aid works, and to demystify the humanitarian response in Gaza today. 

We all understand the dangers of smoking—but the debate over vapes, nicotine pouches and other tobacco alternatives rages on: Can vaping really save lives? Or are nicotine alternatives a slippery slope: a dangerous gateway to lifelong substance use? Professors Jasjit Ahluwalia and Jennifer Tidey have spent their careers researching and fighting the global scourge of tobacco-related diseases and fatalities. The two public health professionals discuss their takes on a harm reduction and how it applies to the modern nicotine landscape.

Professor Eric Loucks, director of Brown's Mindfulness Center, joins host Megan Hall to discuss how practicing mindfulness can have measurable, positive health outcomes. His recent paper in JAMA Network Open looks at how an eight-week mindfulness course, focusing on the Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH) diet, moved the needle on cardiovascular health.

How do we avoid total societal shutdown during a pandemic? Professor Mark Lurie believes the key lies in understanding how social mixing and human mobility impact pathogen spread.

Using Brown's School of Public Health building as a sandbox, his newest NSF-funded project, MAPPS (Mobility Analysis for Pandemic Prevention Strategies) uses the bluetooth beacons to better understand mobility and person-to-person proximity to predict disease exposure. In this episode, Lurie joins host Megan Hall to discuss the aims and the parameters of his study—happening November 6 - November 17, 2023.

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To kick off the School of Public Health’s ten year anniversary celebration, Megan sits down with Dean Ashish Jha to hear more about his time spent serving as White House COVID-19 Response Coordinator. Dr. Jha talks about his eye-opening experience in Washington, his plans for public health education and research now that he’s back in Providence, and even what he tells his own mother when she tests positive for COVID-19.

Behavioral economics is a field that combines psychology and economics. It acknowledges that humans are not rational decision makers and may need “nudges” to incentivize improvements in their health behaviors. Professor Omar Galárraga uses tools from behavioral economics to nudge those at highest risk of HIV infection toward healthier behaviors, like safer sex and the use of antiviral medication PrEP. Hear about his successful work in Mexico and his advocacy for national programs aimed at stopping the spread of HIV.

Parents know how difficult it can be to navigate healthy eating with their kids — in a world of delicious options, how can we encourage our children to build nutritious habits? Professor Alison Tovar investigates children's food environments and the factors that shape our eating behaviors early in life. Hear about her community-based work developing engaging interventions to improve children's eating habits, and get tips for encouraging healthier food habits for your kids, too!

Epidemiologist Will Goedel and clinician Philip Chan were at the forefront of the mpox response in RI in 2022. These Brown professors worked to vaccinate, educate and protect the state's most vulnerable populations. Chan and Goedel join host Megan Hall to discuss the 2022 mpox response, its impact on the LGBTQ+ community and the current landscape surrounding mpox immunization.