News from the School of Public Health

A School of Public Health report on the potential public health impacts if fracking is allowed in Maryland, released in August, has been the focus of a series of recent forums to discuss the implications of its findings and to inform state decision-makers.

College Park, Md. – The Maryland Department of Environment and Department of Health and Mental Hygiene released a report by the University of Maryland School of Public Health, which assesses the potential public health effects of allowing unconventional natural gas development and production (UNGDP), commonly known as “fracking” (a name derived from one part of the process), in western Maryland’s Marcellus Shale region.

A study of older adults at increased risk for Alzheimer's disease shows that moderate physical activity may protect brain health and stave off shrinkage of the hippocampus – the brain region responsible for memory and spatial orientation that is attacked first in Alzheimer's disease. Dr. J. Carson Smith, a kinesiology researcher in the University of Maryland School of Public Health who conducted the study, says that while all of us will lose some brain volume as we age, those with an increased genetic risk for Alzheimer's disease typically show greater hippocampal atrophy over time. The findings are published in the open-access journal Frontiers in Aging Neuroscience.

New research out of the University of Maryland School of Public Health shows that exercise may improve cognitive function in those at risk for Alzheimer’s by improving the efficiency of brain activity associated with memory. Memory loss leading to Alzheimer’s disease is one of the greatest fears among older Americans. While some memory loss is normal and to be expected as we age, a diagnosis of mild cognitive impairment, or MCI, signals more substantial memory loss and a greater risk for Alzheimer’s, for which there currently is no cure.

Kathleen Ruben, a Ph.D. candidate in health services administration, has been selected as the first recipient of the Herschel S. Horowitz Center for Health Literacy's Rima E. Rudd Fellowship in Health Literacy.