PFAS Chemicals and Your Health
Exposure to PFAS is associated with numerous health outcomes, with children being especially vulnerable. Learn about PFAS exposures and how to protect yourself and your family from it.
“Forever Chemicals” Linked to Higher Risk of Type 2 Diabetes
Exposure to a class of synthetic chemicals known as per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS)—often called “forever chemicals”—may increase the risk of developing type 2 diabetes, according to a new study led by Mount Sinai researchers.
Prenatal and Childhood Lead Exposure Linked to Faster Memory Decay in Children
A study led by researchers at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai shows that exposure to lead during pregnancy and early childhood may accelerate the rate at which children forget information—a critical marker of memory impairment that may have implications for learning and development.
Dr. Manasi Agrawal Named Director of Environmental Gastroenterology at Mount Sinai
The Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai has announced the appointment of Dr. Manasi Agrawal as the inaugural Director of Environmental Gastroenterology in the Henry D. Janowitz Division of Gastroenterology.
The Tao of Exposomics
What happens when everything you thought you knew suddenly no longer fits the world?
Gut Microbiome and Food Insecurity Linked to Cognitive Impairment
A new study led in part by Mount Sinai researchers has found a compelling link between the composition of the gut microbiome and the risk of cognitive impairment in adults, underscoring the role biology and social determinants—such as food insecurity— in brain health.
Sun Exposure: Protecting Children
Solar radiation is hazardous for children. Blistering sunburns in childhood and adolescence are especially dangerous and are strongly associated with increased risk of skin cancer. Blond or red-haired and blue-eyed children, who often have lighter complexions, are at highest risk of solar injury, because their skin contains smaller quantities of the protective pigment, melanin, than children with darker complexions.
Santiago Exposome Symposium: September 25-27, 2025
The Second Latin American Exposome Symposium will be held in Santiago, Chile, September 25-27, 2025, focusing on the theme “Integrating Environmental Exposures into Aging, Alzheimer’s Disease, and ADRD Research.”
I Wanna Be Your Central Dogma: A Song of Gene-Environment Interaction
Biological theories of molecular biology have long neglected the exposome. It’s time to integrate environment and genetics into a unified theorem.
Protecting Your Family From Ticks
Ticks are very small 8-legged bugs that can transmit diseases to humans (tick-borne diseases). It’s important to protect yourself and your family from tick bites
Cardiorespiratory Effects of Wildfire Smoke Particles Can Persist for Months, Even After a Fire Has Ended
Exposure to lingering fine particulate matter (PM2.5) from wildfire smoke can have health effects up to three months afterwards, well beyond the couple of days that previous studies have identified. The exposure can occur even after the fires have ended.
Artificial Turf Health Risks
Many turf products are available and some are even advertised as “green” or “ecofriendly”, but it can be difficult to assess their safety for use by children. Read this entry to learn what chemicals these products contain and understand what the potential health risks may be.
Position Statement on the Use of Artificial Turf Surfaces
The Mount Sinai Children’s Environmental Health Center at the Institute for Exposomic Research recommends against the installation of artificial turf playing surfaces and fields due to the uncertainties surrounding the safety of these products and the potential for dangerous heat and chemical exposures.
Ultra-processed Foods and Your Health
Ultra-processed foods (UPFs) make up the vast majority of foods on grocery shelves. While convenient and low-cost, these foods often lack nutrients, and recent studies show that frequent consumption of UPFs may contribute to health risks.
“Smoke ’em if you got ’em”…Obsessively musing about addiction
We need a Human Exposome Project to catalyze exposome research and gene-environment interaction research—and we need it now. We need it to exponentially advance our understanding of biology. We need it to complete the human genome project—because with it, we will better understand the interactions between genes and environment.
Dr. Dania Valvi Appointed to Newly Created Public Health Role
The Department of Public Health at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai is pleased to announce the appointment of Damaskini (Dania) Valvi, MD, MPH, PhD, Associate Professor in the Department of Environmental Medicine and member of the Mount Sinai Institute for Exposomic Research, as Vice Chair for Research and Education and Director of Graduate Education in Public Health.
Community-Led Air Quality Monitoring in the Lower East Side
The kickoff meeting, held at the Sixth Street Community Center, brought together approximately 20 attendees. It served to introduce the project team, build local interest, and begin identifying priority areas for monitoring and community action.
Courses
The Institute offers educational modules taught by experts at the forefront of exposomics and metabolomics research. Trainees engage in practical exercises and data analysis to reinforce learning in order to stay updated with the latest advancements and trends shaping these rapidly evolving fields.
Community Mapping Workshop Series
Community mapping in environmental health science aims to empower communities by integrating local knowledge with scientific methods to gather and analyze data. This process enables the discovery of actionable insights, making it a valuable resource for advocacy, strategic planning, and implementing solutions specific to a community’s needs.
The Clinical, Translational, Implementation Science Blues
For the last 25 years, I told myself I lived in the public health and clinical medicine worlds simultaneously, but that is incorrect. I spent time in each world sequentially in short bursts. In the morning, I’d come to my office in the Public Health School, then I would leave my research team to work a shift in the Pediatric Emergency Room. The physical proximity of the school to the ER was the only actual connection, as these worlds rarely overlapped. It was like stepping through the closet of a C.S. Lewis novel into Narnia.