Christine Stabell Benn

Christine Stabell Benn is a Danish physician, epidemiologist and professor of global health at the University of Southern Denmark. She is chair of the Danish Institute for Advanced Study and has worked with the Bandim Health Project in Guinea-Bissau since 1993. Her research has focused on childhood health interventions, vitamin A supplementation and the proposed non-specific effects of vaccines.

Benn was elected a member of the Academia Europaea in 2020, received the George Macdonald Medal in 2023 and was appointed Knight of the Order of the Dannebrog in 2025.

Education and career Benn received her medical degree from the University of Copenhagen in 1996, followed by a PhD in 2003 and a Doctor of Medical Science degree in 2011. She undertook postdoctoral work at Rigshospitalet in Copenhagen and at Stanford University in the United States.

Research Benn's research has examined whether vaccines and vitamins may affect overall morbidity and mortality in ways that extend beyond their recognised effects on the diseases or deficiencies they are intended to prevent. She has led or participated in randomised trials involving vitamin A supplementation, BCG vaccine, oral polio vaccine and early measles vaccination. The interpretation, clinical significance and public-health implications of the proposed effects remain debated.

Benn and Aaby disputed the analysis and asked the journal to retract the commentary. The journal declined the request.

The proposed randomised trial was intended to enrol approximately 14,000 newborns. One group would receive the vaccine at birth, while the other would follow the country's existing schedule and receive it later. Researchers intended to examine mortality, illness and developmental outcomes.

The World Health Organization subsequently stated that it had significant concerns about the study's scientific justification, ethical safeguards and compliance with accepted principles for research involving human participants. In March 2026, the University of Southern Denmark said it had paused all work associated with the proposed trial while seeking an independent ethical evaluation. United States health officials stated that the study remained under review and could proceed only after approval from the relevant authorities.

Awards and honours University of Southern Denmark Innovation Prize, 2019 Elected member of the Academia Europaea, 2020 George Macdonald Medal, awarded by the Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene and the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, 2023 Knight of the Order of the Dannebrog, 2025