News

Married women are also at risk of contracting HIV/AIDS from their infected husbands or partners, according to a study comissioned by the Association of Women for Action and Research (AWARE) and led by Assoc Prof Wong Mee Lian from the Saw Swee Hock School of Public Health with support from the Department of STI (Sexually Transmitted Infections) Control, National Skin Centre and the Communicable Disease Centre. Among the women interviewed during the study, more than half of those diagnosed with HIV or AIDS had been infected by their husbands. Most lacked sexual empowermentRead more

Our local favourite dishes may be even unhealthier than fast food, according to Assoc Prof Rob van Dam from the NUS Saw Swee Hock School of Public Health, who was speaking at the 2nd Annual Worlds of Healthy Flavours Asia 2013. In fact, 25 local dishes including fried rice, claypot rice and chicken rice contain higher levels of salt than Western fare such pizza, burgers or fries, leading to an increased consumption of sodium. Taking into account the hectic lifestyles of Singaporeans, Assoc Prof van Dam suggested that in order to lowerRead more

Retinal imaging tests conducted during pregnancy can help assess foetal growth outcomes, complementing the conventional ultrasound scans done during pregnancy. The study, GUSTO (Growing Up in Singapore Towards Healthy Outcomes), found that abnormal retinal blood vessels are associated with hypertension, stroke and cardiovascular mortality. Preliminary findings also found that women with smaller eye vessels during pregnancy had a high chance of a smaller foetal growth. Professor Saw Seang Mei from the NUS Saw Swee Hock School of Public Health and principal investigator of the GUSTO study said that pregnant mothers whoRead more

On 5 December 2013, Utrecht University inked two Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with NUS Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine (YLLSoM) and NUS Saw Swee Hock School of Public Health (SSHSPH) to foster partnerships on medical research and advancement. With this latest collaboration, the three institutions will see the exchange of scientific, academic and technical information and potentially two-way exchange of students, faculty, researchers and administrators. Ms Marjan Oudeman, President of Utrecht University, Professor John Wong, Chief Executive-Designate, National University Health System (NUHS) and Vice Provost (Academic Medicine), National UniversityRead more

Outdoor air pollution has been classified as carcinogenic to humans and positively correlated with increased risk of lung cancer and bladder cancer, according to a recent report from the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), a specialised cancer agency of the World Health Organisation (WHO). It has already been proven that air pollution is linked to an increased risk of various other chronic conditions including respiratory and heart diseases. Professor Lee Hin Peng, head of the Chronic Diseases Programme at the Saw Swee Hock School of Public Health, NationalRead more

The Saw Swee Hock School of Public Health (SSHSPH) warmly congratulates our distinguished alumnus and philanthropist Professor Saw Swee Hock on receiving the President’s Award for Philanthropy (Individual category)! The award was presented by President of the Republic of Singapore, President Dr Tony Tan Keng Yam at the President’s Volunteerism and Philanthropy Awards (PVPA) ceremony on 23 October 2013, in honour of individuals and organisations who have set excellence benchmarks in encouraging the spirit of giving in Singapore. As a member of the NUS Board of Trustees, Professorial Fellow atRead more

Two professors from the National University of Singapore will ride their motorcycles 23,000km from Singapore to Sweden, to raise awareness for breast cancer research and education. Associate Professors Mikael Hartman from the Saw Swee Hock School of Public Health and Philip Iau from the Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine will embark on The Long Ride 2014 – Singapore to Swden For Breast Cancer Research to raise awareness and research funds for the disease, the most common cancer among females in Singapore. The expedition, which will begin in March 2014, will last fourRead more

Sexual health education and disease prevention programmes should also be extended to include senior citizens, and not just younger audiences, a study conducted by doctors from the Communicable Diseases Division and the Saw Swee Hock School of Public Health has found. The study found that not only are there rising trends of Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV), Acquired Immudeficiency Syndome (AIDS) and genital herpes among older people, the risk of older people contracting STIs is also higher, due in part to longer life expectancies and medical advances. Media Coverage: TODAY, 14Read more

Researchers from the National University of Singapore (NUS) have designed a free app which enables parents to tell whether their young children are colour blind. The app, available as a simple game, requires children between the ages of three and six to “catch” butterflies of matching colours by tapping on a screen. Professor Saw Seang Mei, an eye disease expert from the Saw Swee Hock School of Public Health, said that early detection of colour blindness in children is beneficial as it may have an impact not just on theirRead more

The Saw Swee Hock School of Public Health is pleased to announce that a Community Health Project titled ‘How well do consumers understand health financing? A community-based survey of residents in a public housing estate in Singapore’led by Associate Professor Fong Ngan Phoon from the Saw Swee Hock School of Public Health was awarded the Young Investigator Award – Quality, Health Services Research, Gold at the Singapore Health & Biomedical Congress 2013. Our heartiest congratulations, Sabrina and team! We are proud of your achievements and look forward to many more accomplishments in your studies andRead more

While it is most certainly a life-saving procedure, many have the misconception that a colorectal screening is expensive. Although colorectal cancer is the most common cancer in Singapore, more than 80 per cent of people interviewed cited the cost as one of the main reasons preventing them from undergoing colorectal screening, a study conducted by researchers from the National University Hospital (NUH), the Saw Swee Hock School of Public Health (SSHSPH) and the Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine (YLLSOM) found. One of the ways to overcome this, the studyRead more

Couch potatoes take note – time spent watching television is more harmful to your health than other sedentary activities such as reading or computer use. A study conducted by the National University of Singapore Saw Swee Hock School of Public Health has found that increased television screen time is linked to an increased risk of high blood pressure and obesity, while avid readers or computer users did not display this correlation. One big factor is the unconscious habit of unhealthy snacking while watching television. “People don’t pay that much attentionRead more