“Environmental health comprises those aspects of human health, including quality of life, that are determined by physical, chemical, biological, social, and psychosocial factors in the environment. It also refers to the theory and practice of assessing, correcting, controlling, and preventing those factors in the environment that can potentially affect adversely the health of present and future generations.” – World Health Organization, 2004
Around the world, many of the major health risks relate to interactions between people and their environment. Both natural and human-made factors can create hazards. For example, community drinking water sources can be contaminated by agricultural run-offs containing toxic pesticides and fertilizers, but they can also be contaminated by naturally-occurring elements in the earth such as arsenic and fluoride. World-wide, environmental factors play a role in more than 80% of adverse outcomes reported by the World Health Organization, including infectious diseases, injuries, mental retardation, and cancer, to name a few.
Although environmental hazards exist world-wide, some populations are at special risk. Globalization and industrialization in the developing world have increased daily exposure to pollution and a wide array of chemicals in air, water, and food. At the same time, age-old hazards associated with underdevelopment, such as fecal pollution of drinking water sources due to a lack of basic sanitation, still exist. The effects of environmental risk factors are magnified by conditions often prevalent in poorer, undeveloped countries such as poor nutrition, poverty, lack of education about risks, and conflicts.
Children are particularly susceptible to environmental risks because their brains and bodies are still developing and because, pound for pound, they breathe, eat, and drink more than adults. It is estimated that about one-quarter of global disease is caused by avoidable environmental exposures; for children under the age of five, the figure is more than one-third. Indeed, the two most important causes of death in young children in young children in the developing world are directly related to the environment: acute respiratory infections, related to poor air quality; and diarrhea, related to poor drinking water quality. Each year, about three million children under the age of five die of environment-related diseases.
The United States Department of Health and Human Services has stated: “Actions in every country affect the environment and influence events around the world… The United States can contribute to improving the health of people internationally, not only as part of a shared goal for humanity, but also because a healthy global population has positive social and economic benefits throughout the world.”
NCEH/ATSDR is dedicated to assisting nations to improve environmental health world-wide. In addition to the Center’s signature global environmental health programs, NCEH/ATSDR is participating in over 70 discrete global environmental health projects in 2006, primarily in developing countries. These projects encompass a wide range of activities including training and technical assistance, data collection and analysis, laboratory analyses, research, surveillance, and emergency responses.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 1600 Clifton Rd, Atlanta, GA 30333, U.S.A
Tel: (404) 639-3311 • CDC Contact Center: 800-CDC-INFO • 888-232-6348 (TTY)
