The Mary Ann & J. Milburn Smith Child Health Research Program was launched in 2000 with a magnificent gift from Mrs. Mary Ann Smith in memory of her late husband.  The multidisciplinary program consists of investigators with expertise in epidemiology, biostatistics, clinical medicine, population genetics, practice-based research, demography, public health, and child health policy and advocacy.  Investigators in the Smith Child Health Research Program partner closely with child health professionals, community and government organizations in the Midwest, and collaborate with investigators and policy makers in the U.S. and worldwide.  

Many of the common health problems we face today, such as preterm births, low birth weight, birth defects, asthma, allergy, obesity, diabetes, and behavioral/psychiatric disorders, have complex origins and are determined by multiple environmental factors, genetic factors, and gene-environmental interactions.  Child health is inextricably linked to a dynamic and interconnected ecosystem that consists of individuals, families, communities, and society, as well as the physical, social, and cultural environment.  The scientific mission of the Mary Ann and J. Milburn Smith Child Health Research Program is to address important clinical and public health problems that affect children's health by using state-of-the art methodology and through interdisciplinary collaborations.  Specifically, the program engages in both population and clinical based research, in order to understand the natural history, causes and psychosocial impacts of common and important child health problems; and to elucidate the three key factors in the development of child health problems: environmental factors, genetic susceptibility, and growth and maturation.  The program is actively engaged in translating new scientific discoveries into effective clinical and public health interventions that can benefit  children, their families and their communities.  The Program is also committed to increasing awareness about child health problems among policy makers and the general public, and to training a new generation of child health professionals and researchers.

 

 

Uncovering the Mystery of Food Allergies

Thirty years ago, food allergy was extremely rare.  Today, 4.3 million children in the U.S. suffer from this life-threatening condition.  This startling increase is prompting the development of a multi-site genetic intiative headed by the Bunning Food Allergy Institute at Children's Memorial.    Read More   

 

 On September 28, 2005, Governor Rod Blagojevich named Dianne King of the Gallatin County School Based Health Center as the latest recipient of the People Are Today’s Heroes (PATH) Award for her remarkable work bringing health services to hundredsof students and the community. Ms. King is the downstate Illinois project director for the Child Health Data Lab at the Mary Ann & J. Milburn Smith Child Health Research Program.

 

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