ELEMENT
Delivering Discovery Across Generations
Project Overview
The ELEMENT study (Early Life Exposures in Mexico to ENvironmental Toxicants) is a multi-institutional and international research effort that has initiated and followed three birth cohorts in Mexico City for more than 30 years. During this period, a vast international research team has participated in the different phases of the project, developed more than ten specific projects, initiated and followed up on three different cohorts of mother / child pairs, competed and obtained various grants from US and Mexican agencies, published the study's findings in journals of high international impact, formed a large number of master's and doctoral students on both sides of the border and, above all, contributed to relevant public policy discussions.
The ELEMENT Story
The first ELEMENT cohort began in 1994 with support from an inter-institutional collaboration among Harvard University, the Center for Population Health Research of the National Institute of Public Health in Mexico, the American British Cowdray Medical Center and the National Institute of Perinatology of Mexico.
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ELEMENT was founded by Dr. Mauricio Hernández Ávila, researcher and current Director of Economic and Social Benefits of the Mexican Social Security Institute (Instituto Mexicano del Seguro Social, IMSS), and Dr. Howard Hu, a physician (internist and occupational/environmental medicine specialist) and environmental epidemiologist.
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Study population
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The mother–child pairs of study participants were recruited over a series of years:
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Cohort 1, 1994-1997
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Cohort 2, 1997-2000
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Cohort 3, 2001-2005
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This first cohort sought to study the effects of lead on maternal and child health. However, since then, the study has expanded its area of ​​study in order to understand the effects on health and neurodevelopment derived from exposure to other environmental toxins, exploring how these effects are modified by nutrition, social environment and genetic susceptibility.
Meet The ELEMENT Team
Principal Investigators
Co-Investigators
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Staff Members
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Trainees
PhD Students
Post-Doctoral Fellows
Dr. Karen Peterson:
​Lindsey English, MPH, RD, CHES
​Maria Kofas, MSPH, RDN, LN (co-mentored by Dr. Edward A Ruiz-Narvaez)
Haneen Bou Ghanem, MS, RD
Yanxin (Esther) Zhu, MS
Dev Ram Sunuwar, MS, RD
Junru Pan (co-Mentor Dr. Dana Dolinoy)
Dr. Peter Song:
Canyi Chen, PhD​
Menghan Yi, PhD
Zheshi Zheng, PhD
Dr. Jackie Goodrich:
​Ariana Haidari, MS, RD
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Dr. Erica Jansen:
Michael Kaye, MS, MAcc, CPA​
Donghan Su, MS
Afnan Mohy, MS
Dr. Deb Watkins:
Meizhen Yao, MS
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Dr. Peter Song:
Rui Nie
​Yahui Zhang​
Dr. Angeles Martinez Mier:
Guillermo Tamayo, MS​
Our Collaborators
