The Demographic and Health Surveys at 25 Years and Beyond
For 25 years, the Demographic and Health Survey (DHS) program has provided population and health information to plan, monitor, and evaluate population, health, and nutrition programs. But the largest sample survey program in history is facing a transition. Populations in the developing countries that these surveys describe are changing and policy priorities continue to evolve, calling for different data. What do these changes mean for those who conduct, analyze, and use the DHS? What are the tradeoffs and decisions facing those who collect or use population and health data in developing countries? A panel of three experts examined these issues in a discussion to kick off the 2009-2010 PRB Policy Seminar Series. (October 2009)

Intregrating Population, Health, and Environment in Uganda
After decades of instability and civil conflict, Uganda has enjoyed relative stability, sustained economic growth, and great improvements in health over the last 20 years. During the same period, Uganda's population has grown rapidly, and in 2009 surpassed 30 million people. This rapid population growth is contributing to the degradation of Uganda's natural resources, the backbone of the country's economy and household livelihoods. Continued reductions in poverty depend in large part on finding innovative and integrated solutions to the complex population, health, and environment problems affecting Uganda's poorest people.  (June 2009)

Gender Differences in Health Among the Elderly in China
Men and women face distinct challenges in late life. Paradoxically, men tend to have shorter lives but women have more health problems at any given age. Addressing why women live longer but have more health problems and why men die earlier can help reduce health care and long-term care costs for the elderly and narrow the gender health gap. Toshiko Kaneda, Population Reference Bureau; Zachary Zimmer, University of Utah; and Xianghua Fang and Zhe Tang, Capital Medical University, examined a sample of older adults in Beijing to determine gender differences in health and mortality after a five-year period. (June 2009)

Africa's Future: Improving the Health of Mothers and Children
Every year, 265,000 mothers die in childbirth and 4.5 million children die before the age of 5 from preventable causes in sub-Saharan Africa. To discuss these stark facts and the benefits of family planning programs to address the health of mothers and children, three researchers addressed members of U.S. Congress on June 5, 2009. The event was co-sponsored by Association of Population Centers, Population Action International, Population Association of America, Population Council, Population Reference Bureau, Population Resource Center, and UCLA Bixby Center on Population and Reproductive Health. (June 2009)

Health Effect of Marriage and Other Social Relationships: Interview With Linda Waite
Social relationships keep older people healthy, and the marriage relationship is especially beneficial. A growing body of research helps explain how social interaction interacts with social, physical, and psychological factors that affect an individual's health, and the importance of maintaining social networks and relationships later in life. Sociologist and demographer Linda Waite discussed her research on these interactions with PRB. (June 2009)

Webcast: Climate Change and Urban Adaptation: Managing Unavoidable Health Risks in Developing Countries
On May 14, demographic and environmental experts discussed the health effects of climate change on the world's growing urban population at the symposium "Climate Change and Urban Adaptation: Managing Unavoidable Health Risks in Developing Countries," held at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C. The symposium was jointly sponsored by the Johns Hopkins University Population Center and the Population Reference Bureau. A webcast of the symposium is available online. (May 2009)

Urban Poverty and Health in Developing Countries
This Population Bulletin provides a sketch of urban health in developing countries, documenting the intraurban differences in health for a number of countries and showing how the risks facing the urban poor compare with those facing rural villagers. The Bulletin begins with an overview of the multiple dimensions of urban poverty and a summary of internationally comparable evidence on the urban health differentials associated with poverty. (BUL64.2; June 2009)

Building Ethiopia's Consortium for Integration of Population, Health, and Environment: Interview With CIPHE Coordinator Negash Teklu
Ethiopia's Coalition for Integration of Population, Health, and Environment (CIPHE) is a network of over 60 nongovernmental organizations, international donors, academic institutions, media outlets, and government ministries that seeks to enhance understanding of linkages between population, health, and the environment and promote integration for sustainable development. Jason Bremner, program director, Population, Health, and Environment at PRB, discussed the process of forming and building CIPHE, the reasons for its successful development, and its future plans with Negash Teklu, CIPHE's coordinator. (May 2009)

U.S. Adult Mortality and Health Trends in an International Context
Eileen Crimmins, professor of gerontology and sociology at the Davis School of Gerontology, University of Southern California and the Director of Training, Multidisciplinary Research Training in Gerontology, talked with PRB about life expectancy in the U.S. compared with other countries; the reasons for differing mortality trends; and the effects of lifestyle, behavior, and the health care system on mortality. This webcast is underwritten by the U.S. National Institute on Aging, Behavioral and Social Research Unit, through a grant from the University of Michigan Center on the Demography of Aging. Funding has also been provided by the David and Lucile Packard Foundation and the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation. (April 2009)

The Effect of Smoking on Trends in U.S Mortality at Older Ages
Samuel Preston is the Fredrick J. Warren professor of demography, Population Aging Research Center, at the University of Pennsylvania. Preston talked with PRB about the current rates of smoking in the United States and its contribution to mortality in the United States and other developed countries. This webcast is underwritten by the U.S. National Institute on Aging, Behavioral and Social Research Unit, through a grant from the University of Michigan Center on the Demography of Aging. Funding has also been provided by the David and Lucile Packard Foundation and the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation. (April 2009)