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46 Cards in this Set
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Why is environmental health important?
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-years of healthy life
-Quality of life |
maintaining environmental quality is a pressing task for the 21st century (pollution, air quality, water quality and quantity are all pressing issues) Maintaining a natural ecosystem is an important taks for the US 21st century
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Healthy People 2020 Environmental Health objectives
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1. Outdoor air quality
2. surface and ground water quality 3. toxic substances and hazardous wastes 4. homes and communities 5. infrastructure and surveillance 6. global environmental health |
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Table 1-1: Objectives for Healthy People 2020
1. Outdoor Air quality |
harmful air pollutants
-alternative modes of transportation -cleaner alternative fuels -airborne toxins |
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2. water quality
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-safe drinking water
-waterborne disease outbreaks -water conservation -surface water health risks -beach closings -fish contamination |
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3. toxics and waste
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-elevated blood lead levels in children
-risks posed by hazardous sites -pesticide exposures -toxic pollutants -recycled municipal solid waste |
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4. Healthy homes and healthy communities
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-indoor allergens
-office building air quality -homes tested for radon -radon-resistant new home construction -school policies to protect against environmental hazards -disaster preparedness plans and protocols -lead based paint testing -substandard housing |
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5. infrastructure and surveillance
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-exposure to pesticides
-exposure to heavy metals and other toxic chemicals -information systems used for environmental health -monitoring environmentally related diseases -local agencies using surveillance data for vector control |
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6. Global environmental health
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-global burden of disease
-water quality in the US-Mexico border region |
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Significance of the environment for human health:
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Exposure to potentially hazardous agents accounts for many of the forms of environmentally associated morbidity and mortality
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Examples of hazardous agents are:
-microbes -toxic chemicals and metals -pesticides -ionizing radiation |
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Scope of environmental health problems
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Environmental factors are thought to contribute significantly to many forms of chronic disease such as cancer, including cervical cancer, prostate cancer and breast cancer
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-large proportion of the burden of disease is associated with environmental sources
-prevalence of and mortality of asthma in the US has increase since the 1980s -high % of children with elevated blood lead levels -degrading air quality worldwide |
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Environmental health threats:
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-trash that fouls our beaches
-hazardous wastes (including radioactive wastes) leaching form disposal sites -continuing episodes of air pollution in some areas -exposures to toxic chemicals -destruction of the land through deforestation |
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population and the environment: The Three P's
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Pollution, Population and Poverty
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Principal determinants of Health Worldwide!
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Pollution
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combustion of fossil fuels (e.g; petroleum and coal) that disperse greenhouse gases into atmosphere and may cause:
-global warming -change in distribution of insect vectors |
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Population
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Overpopulation in developing nations is leading to the human population exceeding the carrying capacity of the planet
-world population of 10-12 billion during the 21st century? -related to urban crowding |
Professor Lee says the human factor is the most important factor. More infrastructure is needed
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Infectious Disease epidemics: A consequence of crowding?
-swine flue and h1n1 |
-avian influenza A (H5N1) virus: outbreaks on poultry farms in Asia
-health officials were concerned that the virus might recombine with a human influenza virus, enabling human to human transmission and a resulting pandemic -Swine flu (H1N1 influenza): spread through North America to other parts of the globe. -the WHO declared pandemic |
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Swine Flue (H1N1 2009 Virus)
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-concern that a large proportion of the population might be susceptible to infection with the virus
-seasonal influenza vaccine H1N1 strain might not provide protection -during the summer and fall months of 2009, influenza activity peaked -week ending October 24, 2009-49 of 50 states reported geographically widespread disease -worldwide (as of 31 January 2010) more than 209 countries and overseas territories or communities reported laboratory confirmed cases of pandemic infleuenza H1N1 2009, including at least 15174 deaths. |
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Poverty
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-linked to population growth
-one of the well-recognized determinants of adverse health outcomes |
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environmental risk transitition
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changes in environmental risks that happen as a consequences of economic development in the less developed regions of the world.
-before transition occurs, poor quality of: -food -air -water |
after transition, a new set of environmental problems take hold. Examples include release of:
-acid rain precursors -ozone depleting chemicals -greenhouse gases |
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population growth
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increasing at an exponential rate
-threatens to overwhelm available resources -may cause periodic food scarcity and famine in some areas of the world |
causes of population growth:
-increases in fertility -reductions in mortality -migration |
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Trends in population Growth:
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As of June 1999, 6 billion people inhabitated our planet.
-from 1931 to 1974 (a 43 year interval) the earth's population doubled and is projected to double again during approximately the same interval (1974 to 2018) |
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Population dynamics
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the ever-changing interrelationships among the set of variables that influences the demographic makeup of populations as well as the variables that influence the growth and decline of population sizes. (Fertility, fertility trends, demographic transition, urbanization)
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Fertility:
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-a measure of fertility is the total fertility rate (TFR) which indicates how many births a woman would have by the end of her reproductive life.
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In the U.S., the fertility rate fluctuates from about 2.0 to 2.1 births per woman; the natural population replacement rate is estimated to be 2.1
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Fertility trends:
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U.S., Canada, Japan, South Korea, Thailand, China and many European countries are at or below he replacement rate for fertility
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many Asian, Latin American, and African countries have a fertility rate of 4.0 births per woman.
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Demographic transition:
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Alterations over time in a population's fertility, mortality, and make-up.
-developed societies have progressed through three stages that have affected their age and sex distributions. |
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The three stages of demographic transition:
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Stage1: population is mostly young, and fertility and mortality rates are high. Overall, the population remains small.
-stage2: mortality rates drop and fertility rates remain high. There is a rapid increase in population, particularly among the younger age groups. -stage3: fertility rates drop and cause a more even distribution of the population according to age and sex. |
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Regional distribution of global population: 1950, 2002, and 2050
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Population rankings of major world regions continue to shift in favor of developing regions
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shift from china and the devleoped nations being the top populations to India and the rest of asia and oceania and Latin America and the caribbean. India will be the largest in 2050. China was the largest in 2002.
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population distribution in urban and rural areas (billions)
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less and less people are living in rural areas. more urbanization (history proves)
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epidemiologic transition
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describes a shift in the pattern of morbidity and mortality from causes related primarily to infectious and communicable diseases to causes associated with chronic, degenerative diseases.
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Examples of epidemiologic transition:
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chronic, degenerative disease include cardiovascular diseases, cancer, neuro-psychiatric conditions, and injuries; these conditions are becoming the major causes of disability and premature death in many nations.
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consequences of population increases:
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-urbanization
-overtaxing carrying capacity -food insecurity -loss of biodiversity |
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#1 consequence of population increase: urbanization
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urbanization:
worldwide, the proportion of urban residents has increased from about 5% in 1800 to 50% in 200 and is expected to reach about 66% by 2030. |
Factors that lead to urbanization:
-industrialization -food availability -employment opportunities -lifestyle considerations -escape from political conflict |
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Hazards of the urban environment:
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1.biological pathogens or pollutants including pathogenic agents and their vectors (and reservoirs)
2. chemical pollutants including those added to the environment by human activities (e.g.; industrial wastes) and chemical agents present in the environment independent of human activities 2. reduced availability, increased cost, and lowered quality of natural resources on which human health depends-e.g., food, water, and fuel. |
more hazards:
4. physical hazards (flooding, settlements built on floodplains or mud slide, landslides) 5. aspects of the BUILT environment with negative consequences on physical or psychosocial health (overcrowding, inadequate proteection against noise, inadquate provision of infrastructure, services and common areas.) 6. natural resource degradation (soil, water quality) 7. national/global environmental degradation with more indirect byt long-term influences on human health. |
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Carrying capacity:
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-The population that an area will support without undergoing environmental deterioration
-carrying capacity tends to limit population size -food availability, reporductive behavior, and infectious diseases tend to keep animal populations in check |
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population crashes:
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If components of the human life support system are disrupted by overpopulation of the planet, the species homo sapiens could suffer a population crash.
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Key terms and definitions:
-Environment -Ecological Model -Ecological System (ecosystem) -Environmental health |
1. environment:
the complex of physical, chemical and biotic factors (as climate, soil and living thing) that act upon an organism or an ecological community and ultimately determine its form and survival |
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2. the ecological model:
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proposes that the determinants of health (environmental, biological, and behavioral) interact and are itnerlinked over the life course of individuals.
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3. ecosystem
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An ecosystem is a dynamic complex of plant, animal, and microorganism communities and the nonliving environment interacting as a functional unit.
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4. Environmental health:
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-addresses all the physical, chemical and biological factors external to the person and all the related factors impacting behaviors
-encompasses control of environmental factors -aims to prevent disease |
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Historical Background:
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Ancient History:
-Greeks (Hippocrates) -Romans Occupational Health Contributions -post 1800 period -current 'hot' topics |
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Hippocrates:
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-Hippocrates, a Greek philosopher who lived between 460 and 370 BC, often is referred to as "the father of medicine."
-he emphasized the role of the environment as an infleunce on people's health and health status in his work titled "On Air, Waters, and Places" ca. 400 BC |
-he proposed that environmental and climatic factors such as the weather, seasons, and prevailing winds; the quality of air, water, and food; and one's geographic location were influential in causign changes in human health.
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Current hot topics:
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-environmental justice
-global climate change -nuclear power -pesiticides and herbicides -war and terrorism |
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Emerging issues in Environmental health (CDC, Healthy People 2020)
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-climate change
-disaster preparedness -nanotechnology -the built environment -exposure to unknown hazards -blood lead levels |
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Careers in Environmental health:
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1. industrial hygienist: responsible for control of hazards that may affect workers as well as hazards that may impact community
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careers in EH:
2. toxicologist |
-the field of environmental toxicology spexializes in the effects of toxic chemicals upon the environment and living creatures such as human beings and wildlife. Occupational and industrial toxicologists investigate the effects of chemicals found in the workplace upon the health of workers.
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careers in EH:
3. Environmental health inspector |
-responsible for monitoring and enforcing government regulations for environmental quality
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careers in EH:
4. occupational health physician/occupational health nurse |
-involved with the prevention and treatment of occupationally related illnesses and injuries
-investigate hazards in the work environment -develop procedures for abatement of hazards -conduct health education programs |
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