Michelle Bell

Dr. Bell’s research addresses air pollution and human health by integrating several disciplines, such as environmental engineering and epidemiology. The overall aim of her work is to answer scientific questions regarding how air pollution affects health and to perform policy-relevant research that contributes to well-informed decision-making and to greater public understanding of environmental health hazards. Much of Dr. Bell’s work uses mathematical modeling to examine the relationship between air pollution, weather, and human health endpoints such as mortality and hospital admissions. Some of this research examines high air pollution episodes. 

Dr. Bell has led national studies of the links between air pollution and risk of hospitalizations and mortality. Other work includes estimating the exposure-response curve between concentrations and health risks and exploring whether heterogeneity in pollution-health estimates can be explained by differences in socio-economic characteristics. Recent and ongoing projects include a study of heat-related mortality in Latin American cities, the impacts of air pollution on low birth weight in Connecticut and Massachusetts, and the relationships between the chemical composition of particulate matter and health.

Dr. Bell is also interested in the health impacts of climate change; in particular the potential changes in air pollution due to climatic change and the subsequent health impacts. Currently, Dr. Bell has research projects based in the United States, Chile, Brazil, Mexico, Korea, and Taiwan.