Mahalingaiah Lab

Home
United States
Boston, MA
Mahalingaiah Lab

Sharing reproductive health research and study updates from the research team led by Dr. Shruthi Mahalingaiah at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health.

08/25/2025

It has been a busy week for the Mahalingaiah Lab! Our team has been traveling across the country sharing our science and building community to advance patient outcomes. 🤝🔬

A few highlights:

🌟 Lab founder and director Dr. Shruthi Mahalingaiah presented and shared her insight at the 2025 SREI Fellows’ Symposium in Salt Lake City on “Revolutionizing Reproductive Research: Every Voice Matters.”

🌟 Lab researchers Zifan Wang, Elvira Fleury, and Boya Zhang each shared science about how chemical exposures in our environment can impact our health at the 2025 Joint Annual Meeting of the International Society of Exposure Science - ISES and ISEE - International Society for Environmental Epidemiology in Atlanta, Georgia.

Coming up in the next few months: opportunities for our team to share science and their expertise with public health colleagues in Berlin, Germany, San Antonio, Texas, and beyond! 🌍

08/20/2025

It’s ! There are so many ways to celebrate, but we’ve put together some of our team’s favorites below. Read on to learn more and comment how you’re prioritizing your wellness this summer!

1. Dance 💃

Moving to music can lift your mood, lower stress, and physical activity can support overall well-being.

2. Try a new fruit or vegetable 🍐

Exploring new foods is a fun way to support your body with a variety of nutrients.

3. Meditate 💫

Meditation can lower your blood pressure, improve mental clarity, and support mindfulness.

4. Connect with an old friend 📞

Did you know that isolation can have a negative impact on health? It’s true! Reaching out to someone you haven’t talked to in a while can boost your mood and help you feel more connected.

5. Do yoga 🧘‍♀️

Yoga can be a way to both get physical activity and calm the nervous system. Many different types of yoga can be beneficial. Free videos on YouTube are a great place to start!

6. Take a nature walk 🌿

Connecting with the outdoors can help you feel more in touch with the natural world around you and also get some steps in.

How do you plan to celebrate this month?

08/13/2025

At the Mahalingaiah Lab, our research investigates the role of common exposures in our environments and how they may impact human health. Whether it’s identifying a link between air pollution and reproductive health, or examining physical activity trends throughout the menstrual cycle, we are reminded every day that we are all part of the same ecosystems that shape our daily lives.

Gardening is one particularly powerful way to connect with our bodies and environments. A new blog post for the SMart Body Blog unpacks the benefits of gardening for physical and mental health and provides three easy resources to get started.

Check it out:
https://hsph.harvard.edu/mahalingaiah-lab/news/growing-healthier-together-the-benefits-of-gardening-for-body-and-mind/

Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health Countway Library U.S. Department of Agriculture U.S. Forest Service

08/05/2025

The Mahalingaiah Lab team loves to read! 📚

Our staff’s picks for summer below 🗒️:

• Dr. Mahalingaiah: Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus

• Gowtham: On the Gene by Siddhartha Mukherjee

• Elizabeth: Everything is Tuberculosis by John Green

• Zifan: Pain Woman Takes Your Keys, and Other Essays from a Nervous System by Sonya Huber, writer

• Carrie: The Anxious Generation by Jonathan Haidt Jonathan Haidt

• Erin: Well by Sandro Galea

• Eliana: Phantom Plague: How Tuberculosis Shaped History by Vidya Krishnan

• Sophia: Bad Blood: The Tuskegee Syphilis Experiment by James H. Jones

• Elvira: Toxic Bodies: Hormone Disruptors and the Legacy of DES by Nancy Langston

• Maddie: The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down: A Hmong Child, Her American Doctors, and the Collision of Two Cultures by Anne Fadiman

What books have you enjoyed recently? Let us know in the comments!

Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health Countway Library Harvard Library

07/30/2025

Have you ever wondered what menstrual products are most frequently used in the US? Scientists with the Apple Women's Health Study surveyed over 11,000 participants to find out! Tampon and/or pad usage were reported the most frequently by participants, in contrast to period underwear and/or cup usage. However, use differed among different groups of participants. For example, participants with longer bleed days used pads more often than those with shorter bleed days.

Do these results surprise (or not surprise) you? Comment below!

07/22/2025

Your menstrual cycle is more than a monthly event – it’s a vital sign about your overall health, and it consists of more than just your bleeding days (hello, ovulation!).

Better understanding your cycles can help you:
- Be more aware of links between your menstrual cycles and your overall health (including heart, bone, and mental health).
- Spot changes early and seek care sooner.
- Feel empowered to discuss your health with your provider more confidently.
- Reduce confusion about what’s “normal.”

A new blog post for the SMart Body Blog explains what you need to know more in depth, including the latest science from the Apple Women's Health Study.

Check it out and comment below what you wish you knew about your menstrual cycle:
https://hsph.harvard.edu/mahalingaiah-lab/news/how-menstrual-cycles-shed-light-on-overall-health/

Address

Boston, MA

Website

https://hsph.harvard.edu/research/mahalingaiah-lab/

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when Mahalingaiah Lab posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Contact The Practice

Send a message to Mahalingaiah Lab:

Shortcuts

Want your practice to be the top-listed Clinic in Boston?