From modest beginnings, the Menzies Research Institute quickly gained a reputation for its ground-breaking work into the link between babies’ sleeping position and sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS).

Menzies developed into an established centre for population health research, with a global reputation in epidemiology.

Some notable successes included highlighting the importance of vitamin D in the development of bones in children and adults;[citation needed] showing evidence of the link between early life sun exposure and susceptibility to multiple sclerosis;[citation needed] and discovering platelets found in the blood kill the malaria parasite during the early stages of a malarial infection.

[2] The Menzies Institute for Medical Research aspires to contribute significantly to human health and wellbeing, with particular emphasis upon research that takes advantage of Tasmania's unique population resource and other competitive advantages.

[3] The institute's five major research themes are public health and primary care, brain diseases and injury, heart and blood vessels, bone and muscle health, and cancer, genetics and immunology.