Professional Documents
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scope of environmental health risks and their impact on the public's health is limited. US Institute of Medicine (2002)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OiiVcm8vjDc
Risk
the probability of harm, injury, disease, death, environmental damage occurring under certain circumstances. What are some risks you take every day?
Risk Management
We cant always rely on intuition, habit, and experience to make a decision
Other factors, including health and environmental factors, play a part Risk management- the process of identifying, assessing, and reducing risks
2. Dose-response assessment
What is the relationship between exposure to the substance and its effects?
3. Exposure assessment
How much, how long, and how often are people exposed to this substance?
4. Risk characterization
The conclusions are spelled out.
5. Risk Management
Toxicity
Toxicants- chemicals with adverse effects
Acute toxicity- occur within short period after high-level exposure to toxicant Chronic toxicity- occur after a long period of low-level exposure to toxicant
Symptoms tend to mimic other chronic diseases associated with risky lifestyle, poor nutrition, and aging
Toxicology
Studies effects of toxicants on living organisms
Studies mechanisms that cause toxicity
Epidemiology
Studying how toxicants, disease, and physical hazards affect the health of human populations
Study large groups of people and investigate a range of possible causes and types of diseases and injuries
Dose-response curve- tests effects of high doses then work way down to threshold level
Maximum dose that has no measurable effect
Chemical Mixtures
Additivity- exactly as expected
Synergistic- more than expected
Living close to the Delaware River makes you 7x more likely to live in an area with an environmental hazard than other places in the region (Mizes 2012) Also the Schuylkill: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z2ge0aJwJ-o