Cheryl Healton
Cheryl Healton
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Founding Dean of School of Global Public Health
Professor of Public Health Policy and Management
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Professional overview
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For the last ten years, Dean Healton has devoted herself to building GPH’s academic, service, and research programs. The School has been accredited by CEPH, increased the size of its student body and research funding, recruited top faculty, added doctoral-level programs, and made diversity, equity and inclusion a priority.
Previously, as the founding President and CEO of Legacy, a leading organization dedicated to tobacco control, Dean Healton guided the national youth tobacco prevention campaign, which has been credited with reducing youth smoking prevalence to record lows, and launched programs for smoking cessation, public education, technical assistance, and a broad range of grant making.
Prior to joining Legacy, Dean Healton held numerous roles at Columbia University including Associate Dean of its Medical School, Assistant Vice President for the Health Sciences and Chairman of Sociomedical Sciences, and Associate Dean of the Mailman School of Public Health. She is an Emeritus Professor of Columbia University.
Dean Healton has authored over 120 peer-reviewed articles and has been awarded multiple grants in AIDS, tobacco control and higher education. She was the founding chair of the Public Health Practice Council of the Association of Schools of Public Health. As an active member of the public health community she has given presentations around the world and is a frequent contributor to national and local coverage of public health issues.
She holds a DrPH from Columbia University's School of Public Health (with distinction) and a Master’s in Public Administration from the Robert F. Wagner Graduate School of Public Service at NYU.
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Education
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MPA, Health Policy and Planning, New York University, New York, NYDrPH, Sociomedical Sciences (with distinction), Columbia University, New York, NY
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Areas of research and study
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Public Health LawPublic Health PolicyTobacco Control
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Publications
Publications
Cost-Utility Analysis of the National truth® Campaign to Prevent Youth Smoking
Increasing youths' exposure to a tobacco prevention media campaign in rural and low-population-density communities
The Strategic Dialogue on Tobacco Harm Reduction: a vision and blueprint for action in the US
Zeller, M., Hatsukami, D., Healton, C., Backinger, C., Benowitz, N., Biener, L., Burns, D., Clark, P., Djordjevic, M., Eissenberg, T., Govino, G., Hecht, S., Henningfield, J., Husten, C., Kobus, K., Leischow, S., Levy, D., Marcus, S., Meyers, M., … Warner, K. (n.d.).Publication year
2009Journal title
Tobacco ControlVolume
18Issue
4Page(s)
324-332A Clinical Practice Guideline for Treating Tobacco Use and Dependence: 2008 Update
Treating Tobacco Use and Dependence: 2008 update U.S. Public Health Service Clinical Practice Guideline executive summary
A closer look at smoking among young adults: Where tobacco control should focus its attention
Building a united front: Aligning the agendas for tobacco control, lung cancer research, and policy
Do tobacco countermarketing campaigns increase adolescent under-reporting of smoking?
Hollywood quits - Behind the scenes of a Hollywood-based smoking cessation program
Reducing carcinogen levels in cigarette smoke [4]
Gritz, E. R., Sarna, L., Dresler, C., & Healton, C. G. (n.d.). In Cancer Epidemiology Biomarkers and Prevention (1–).Publication year
2007Volume
16Issue
10Page(s)
2171Women's knowledge of the leading causes of cancer death
Findings and implications from a national study on potential reduced exposure products (PREPs)
Perspectives from the front lines of tobacco control
Public Health Reports: Foreword
Martin, K., & Healton, C. (n.d.).Publication year
2006Journal title
Public Health ReportsVolume
121Issue
5Page(s)
487-489Smoking, obesity, and their co-occurrence in the United States: Cross sectional analysis
AbstractHealton, C. G., Vallone, D., McCausland, K. L., Xiao, H., & Green, M. P. (n.d.).Publication year
2006Journal title
British Medical JournalVolume
333Issue
7557Page(s)
25-26AbstractObjectives: To describe the prevalence of obesity, smoking, and both health risk factors together among adults in the United States. Design: Cross sectional analysis of a national health interview survey. Setting: United States. Participants: 29 305 adults (aged ≥ 18) in 2002. Main outcome measures: Prevalence of adults who are obese (body mass index ≥ 30), who smoke, and who are obese and smoke. Prevalence was stratified by age, sex, ethnic group, education, and income. Results: 23.5% of adults were obese, 22.7% smoked, and 4.7% smoked and were obese. Conclusions: Although the proportion of adults who smoke and are obese is relatively low, this subgroup is concentrated among lower socioeconomic groups.Televised movie trailers: Undermining restrictions on advertising tobacco to youth
Youth smoking prevention and tobacco industry revenue
Youth tobacco surveillance--United States, 2001-2002.
AbstractMarshall, L. T., Schooley, M., Ryan, H., Cox, P., Easton, A., Healton, C., Jackson, K., Davis, K. C., & Homsi, G. (n.d.).Publication year
2006Journal title
MMWR. Surveillance summaries : Morbidity and mortality weekly report. Surveillance summaries / CDC.Volume
55Issue
3Page(s)
1-56AbstractPROBLEM/CONDITION: Cigarette smoking is the leading preventable cause of death in the United States, accounting for approximately 440,000 deaths each year. The prevalence of cigarette smoking nationwide among high school students (grades 9-12) increased during the 1990s, peaking during 1996-1997, and then declined. Approximately 80% of tobacco users initiate use before age 18 years. An estimated 6.4 million children aged <18 years who are living today will die prematurely as adults because they began to smoke cigarettes during adolescence. The annual health-related economic cost associated with tobacco use exceeds 167 billion dollars. Because of these health and economic consequences, CDC has recommended that states establish and maintain comprehensive tobacco-control programs to reduce tobacco use among youth. REPORTING PERIOD: This report covers data collected during January 2001-December 2002. DESCRIPTION OF THE SYSTEM: The National Youth Tobacco Survey (NYTS) and state youth tobacco surveys (YTS) were developed to provide states with data to support the design, implementation, and evaluation of comprehensive tobacco-control programs. NYTS is representative of middle and high school students in the 50 states and the District of Columbia. During spring 2002, a total of 26,149 students in 246 schools completed NYTS questionnaires. Weighted data for the YTS were achieved by 13 states in 2001 and by 20 states in 2002; state sample sizes varied (range: 982-38,934). This report summarizes data from the 2002 NYTS and the 2001 and 2002 YTS. RESULTS AND INTERPRETATION: Findings from the 2002 NYTS indicate that current use of any tobacco product ranged from 13.3% among middle school students to 28.2% among high school students. Cigarette smoking was the most prevalent form of tobacco use, with 9.8% of middle school students and 22.5% of high school students reporting that they currently smoke cigarettes. Cigar smoking was the second most prevalent form of tobacco use, with 6.0% of middle school students and 11.6% of high school students reporting that they currently smoke cigars. Among current cigarette smokers, 41.8% of middle school students and 52.0% of high school students reported that they usually smoke Marlboro cigarettes. Black middle school and high school students who smoke were more likely to smoke Newport cigarettes than any other brand (58.3% and 66.8%, respectively). Among middle school students aged <18 years, 75.9% were not asked to show proof of age when they bought or tried to buy cigarettes, and 63.4% were not refused purchase because of their age. Among high school students aged <18 years, 58.5% were not asked to show proof of age when they bought or tried to buy cigarettes, and 60.6% were not refused purchase because of their age. Nearly half (49.6%) of middle school students and 62.1% of high school students who smoke reported a desire to stop smoking cigarettes, with 55.4% of middle school students and 53.1% of high school students reported having made at least one cessation attempt during the 12 months preceding the survey. Among students who have never smoked cigarettes, 21.3% of middle school students and 22.9% of high school students were susceptible to initiating cigarette smoking in the next year. Exposure to secondhand smoke (i.e., environmental tobacco smoke) was high. During the week before the survey, 1) 88.3% of middle school students and 91.4% of high school students who currently smoke cigarettes and 47.1% of middle school students and 53.3% of high school students who have never smoked cigarettes were in the same room with someone who was smoking cigarettes; 2) 81.7% of middle school students and 83.7% of high school students who currently smoke cigarettes and 31.5% of middle school students and 29.1% of high school students who have never smoked cigarettes rode in a car with someone who was smoking cigarettes; and 3) 71.5% of middle school students and 57.5% of high school students who currently smoke cigarettes and 33.3% of middle school students and 29.9% of high school students who have never smoked cigarettes lived in a home in which someone else smoked cigarettes. Media and advertising influence was also noted, with 58.1% of middle school students and 54.9% of high school students who currently use tobacco and 11.0% of middle school students and 13.7% of high school students who have never used tobacco reporting that they would wear or use an item with a tobacco company name or logo on it. Although 84.6% of middle school students and 91.2% of high school students had seen or heard antismoking commercials on television or radio, 89.9% of middle school students and 91.3% of high school students also had seen actors using tobacco on television or in the movies. PUBLIC HEALTH ACTIONS: Health and education officials use YTS and NYTS data to plan, evaluate, and improve national and state programs to prevent and control youth tobacco use. States can use these data in presentations to their state legislators to demonstrate the need for funding comprehensive tobacco-control programs, including tobacco cessation and prevention programs for youth.Carson's Legacy
Comparing adolescent reactions to national tobacco countermarketing advertisements using Web TV
Evidence of a dose-response relationship between "truth" antismoking ads and youth smoking prevalence
Flavored Tobacco Products
Healton, C. (n.d.).Publication year
2005Journal title
Washington PostForeword
Wainscott-Sargent, A., & Healton, C. (n.d.). In A Breath Away (1–).Publication year
2005Physician and dentist tobacco use counseling and adolescent smoking behavior: Results from the 2000 National Youth Tobacco Survey
AbstractShelley, D., Cantrell, J., Faulkner, D., Haviland, L., Healton, C., & Messeri, P. (n.d.).Publication year
2005Journal title
PediatricsVolume
115Issue
3Page(s)
719-725AbstractObjective. The present study describes patterns of tobacco use counseling among physicians and dentists as reported by adolescents and determines the association between provider advice to quit and cessation activities among current smokers. Methods. Data were analyzed from the 2000 National Youth Tobacco Survey, an anonymous, self-administered, school-based survey. The National Youth Tobacco Survey was administered to a nationally representative sample of 35 828 students in grades 6 to 12 in 324 schools. Results. Thirty-three percent of adolescents who visited a physician or a dentist in the past year reported that a physician counseled them about the dangers of tobacco use, and 20% reported that a dentist provided a similar message. Among students who smoked in the past year, 16.4% received advice to quit from a physician and 11.6% received advice to quit from a dentist. Physician or dentist advice to quit was correlated with 1 or more quit attempts in the past 12 months. Conclusion. On the basis of adolescent reports, physician and dentist practice patterns remain well below recommended guidelines. Results suggest that provider advice to quit is associated with cessation activity. Additional studies are needed to confirm whether the low prevalence of brief provider tobacco use counseling is a missed opportunity to affect adolescent smoking behavior.truth
Healton, C. (n.d.).Publication year
2005Journal title
Ad Week