Elizabeth Bertone-Johnson

Elizabeth Bertone-Johnson

Professor of Epidemiology
Director, Center for Program Evaluation

Women’s health; mental health

Location

Arnold House

715 North Pleasant Street
Amherst, MA 01003
United States

410 Arnold House

My research focuses on four interconnected areas: (1) the epidemiology and etiology of premenstrual syndrome, (2) the epidemiology and etiology of accelerated reproductive aging and early menopause (3) the intersection of reproductive and cardiovascular health in women, and (4) how vitamin D impacts women’s health throughout the life course.

Increasing evidence suggests that early life experiences influence gynecologic health, and that premenopausal gynecologic health correlates with health after menopause. My work uses a life course approach to identify novel diet and behavioral factors for early life conditions such as premenstrual syndrome and reproductive aging, and then to assess whether these conditions may share common etiology and/or risk factor profiles with hypertension and cardiovascular disease later in life. My goals are both to identify new ways for women to improve their gynecologic health, and to determine if gynecologic health conditions may be early sentinels for cardiovascular disease. The ability to identify young women at high risk for later cardiovascular disease would provide new opportunities for early intervention, and thus could have a substantial impact on improving women’s health.

Education

  • Postdoctoral, Harvard Medical School/Harvard School of Public Health, 2000-2001
  • ScD, Harvard School of Public Health, 1999
  • SM, Harvard School of Public Health, 1996
  • ABmcl, Harvard College, 1994

Key Publications

Bertone-Johnson ER, Houghton SC*, Whitcomb BW, Sievert LL, Zagarins SZ, Ronnenberg AG. Association of blood pressure with premenstrual syndrome in young adult women. J Women's Health 2016 (Epub ahead of print; PMID:27420549).

Bertone-Johnson ER, Whitcomb BW, Rich-Edwards JW, Hankinson SE, Manson JE. Premenstrual syndrome and subsequent hypertension in a prospective study. Am J Epidemiol 2015;182(12):1000-9 (PMID:22601989).

Bertone-Johnson ER, Ronnenberg AG, Houghton SA, Nobles C, Zagarins SE, Whitcomb BW.  Association of inflammation markers with menstrual symptoms and premenstrual syndrome in young women. Human Reprod 2014 29(9):1987-1994. (PMID:25035435)

Chocano-Bedoya PO*, Manson JE, Hankinson SE, Willett WC, Johnson SR, Chasan-Taber L, Ronnenberg AG, Bigelow C, Bertone-Johnson ER. Intake of selected minerals and risk of premenstrual syndrome. Am J Epidemiol 2013;177(10):1118-1127. (PMCID:PMC3649635)

Bertone-Johnson ER, Powers SI, Spangler L, Larson JC, Michael YL, Millen AE, Bueche MN, Salmoirago-Blotcher E, Brunner RL, Ockene I, Ockene JK, Liu S, Manson JE.  Vitamin D supplementation and depression in the Women’s Health Initiative Calcium and Vitamin D Trial. Am J Epidemiol 2012;176:1-13. (PMCID:PMC3385159)

Bertone-Johnson ER, Hankinson SE, Bendich A, Johnson SR, Willett WC, Manson JE.  Calcium and vitamin D intake and risk of incident premenstrual syndrome.  Arch Intern Med 2005;165:1246-1252. (PMID:15956003)