I am an Adjunct Professor and Research Group Leader at the Institute of Evolutionary Medicine at the University of Zurich. I have a multidisciplinary background in environmental, economic and social history, as well as in evolutionary medicine, (historical) epidemiology, (historical) anthropometry and (historical) demography. My research focuses on population health over time, particularly the interactions between human health and environmental change in Switzerland and beyond over the past two centuries. The latest trends and monitoring of important health issues are also part of my work. By combining historical and epidemiological approaches, my research group provides critical context to contemporary health and societal challenges.
Research group, projects & news
See my group's separate webpage
Other Affiliations and Memberships
- EU COST Action "The Great Leap. Multidisciplinary approaches to health inequalities, 1800-2022" (Working Group Leader)
- IUSSP Panel "Epidemics & Contagious Diseases: The Legacy of the Past" (Panel Member)
- Crisis Competence Center, UZH (Member)
- Initiative Geisteswissenschaften, UZH (Member)
- Epidemiology & Biostatistics PhD Program UZH (Member)
- Center for Military & Disaster Medicine, Swiss Armed Forces (Member of the Scientific Board)
- Zurich Center for Integrative Human Physiology (ZIHP) (Member)
- Institute of History, University of Bern (Research Affiliate & Lecturer)
- Digital Society Initiative (DSI), University of Zurich (Member)
- Swiss School of Public Health SSPH+ (Faculty Member)
Publications
See also Google Scholar Profile
ZORA Publication List
Publications
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2018
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Journal Article
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Ladies First: female and male adult height in Switzerland, 1770-1930 Economics and Human Biology, 29, 76–87. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ehb.2018.02.002
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Increasing variability of body mass and health correlates in Swiss conscripts, a possible role of relaxed natural selection? Evolution, Medicine, and Public Health, 2018, 116–126. https://doi.org/10.1093/emph/eoy012
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Associations between anthropometric indices, blood pressure and physical fitness performance in young Swiss men: a cross-sectional study BMJ Open, 8, e018664. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmjopen-2017-018664
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Published Research Report
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Übergewicht und Lebensstil - Auswertung der menuCH-Daten Bundesamt für Gesundheit. https://www.bag.admin.ch/dam/bag/de/dokumente/npp/forschungsberichte/forschungsberichte-e-und-b/auswertung-menu-ch.pdf.download.pdf/Übergewicht%20und%20Lebensstil%20-%20Auswertung%20der%20menuCH-Daten.pdf
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2017
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Journal Article
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Worldwide trends in body-mass index, underweight, overweight, and obesity from 1975 to 2016: a pooled analysis of 2416 population-based measurement studies in 128·9 million children, adolescents, and adults The Lancet, 390, 2627–2642. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(17)32129-3
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Secular trends in stature of late 20 th century white South Africans and two European populations HOMO Journal of Comparative Human Biology, 68, 433–439. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jchb.2017.10.001
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Individual development and potential determinants of excess weight in children and adolescents: a longitudinal study Swiss Medical Weekly, 147, w14501. https://doi.org/10.4414/smw.2017.14501
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A tall order: small area mapping and modelling of adult height among Swiss male conscripts Economics and Human Biology, 1–10. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ehb.2017.01.005
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Temporal trends, regional variation and socio-economic differences in height, BMI and body proportions among German conscripts, 1956-2010 Public Health Nutrition, 20, 391–403. https://doi.org/10.1017/S1368980016002408
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Body height and mortality - mortality follow-up of four Swiss surveys Preventive Medicine, 101, 67–71. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ypmed.2017.05.023
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Comparison of 3D laser-based photonic scans and manual anthropometric measurements of body size and shape in a validation study of 123 young Swiss men PeerJ, 5, e2980. https://doi.org/10.7717/peerj.2980
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Habilitation
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“From growth in height to growth in breadth” – An evolutionary perspective on the changing body shape in Switzerland (and Germany) since the 19th century (Habilitation, University of Zurich) https://doi.org/10.5167/uzh-152024
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Published Research Report
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Waist Circumference und Waist-to-Height-Ratio bei Schweizer Stellungspflichtigen 2016 Bundesamt für Gesundheit. https://www.bag.admin.ch/bag/de/home/service/publikationen/forschungsberichte/forschungsberichte-ernaehrung-bewegung.html
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Der Body-Mass-Index der Schweizer Stellungspflichtigen 2015 Bundesamt für Gesundheit. https://www.bag.admin.ch/bag/de/home/service/publikationen/forschungsberichte/forschungsberichte-ernaehrung-bewegung.html
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2016
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Journal Article
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Monte Carlo simulation of body height in a spatial network European Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 70, 756–756. https://doi.org/10.1038/ejcn.2016.71
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From undernutrition to overnutrition: the evolution of overweight and obesity among young men in Switzerland since the 19th century Obesity Facts, 9, 259–272. https://doi.org/10.1159/000446966
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Multivariable analysis of total cholesterol levels in male Swiss Armed Forces conscripts 2006-2012 (N = 174,872) BMC Cardiovascular Disorders, 16, 1–13. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12872-016-0218-2
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Finding big shots: small-area mapping and spatial modelling of obesity among Swiss male conscripts BMC Obesity, 3, 1–12. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40608-016-0092-6
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A century of trends in adult human height ELife, 5, e13410. https://doi.org/10.7554/eLife.13410
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Trends in adult body-mass index in 200 countries from 1975 to 2014: a pooled analysis of 1698 population-based measurement studies with 19·2 million participants The Lancet, 387, 1377–1396. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(16)30054-X
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