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Books > Medicine > General issues > Public health & preventive medicine > Personal & public health > Environmental factors
Encyclopedia of Environmental Health, Second Edition, Six Volume
Set presents the newest release in this fundamental reference that
updates and broadens the umbrella of environmental health,
especially social and environmental health for its readers. There
is ongoing revolution in governance, policies and intervention
strategies aimed at evolving changes in health disparities, disease
burden, trans-boundary transport and health hazards. This new
edition reflects these realities, mapping new directions in the
field that include how to minimize threats and develop new
scientific paradigms that address emerging local, national and
global environmental concerns.
"We have to adapt to the impacts that, unfortunately, we can no
longer avoid", said President Obama at the UN Climate Summit in
September 2014. Adaptation and resilience are now a must in both
academic research and international bodies. A fashionable concept,
resilience's polysemy sparks many debates on its uses and
operational relevance. This book bridges the increasing divide
between academic research and the latest planning innovations,
offering practical and conceptual insights for practitioners,
researchers and students. Magali Reghezza-Zitt and Samuel Rufat
present a cross-disciplinary, state-of-the-art debate and critical
analysis of the social, spatial, practical and political
implications of resilience.
Insects are the most ecologically important multicellular
heterotrophs in terrestrial systems. They play critical roles in
ecological food webs, remain devastating agricultural and medical
pests, and represent the most diverse group of eukaryotes in terms
of species numbers. Their dominant role among terrestrial
heterotrophs arises from a number of key physiological traits, and
in particular by the developmental and evolutionary plasticity of
these traits. Ecological and Environmental Physiology of Insects
presents a current and comprehensive overview of how the key
physiological traits of insects respond to environmental variation.
It forges conceptual links from molecular biology through
organismal function to population and community ecology. As with
other books in the Series, the emphasis is on the unique
physiological characteristics of the insects, but with applications
to questions of broad relevance in physiological ecology. As an aid
to new researchers on insects, it also includes introductory
chapters on the basics and techniques of insect physiology ecology.
From gluten-free to all-Paleo, GMOs to grass-fed beef, our
newsfeeds abound with nutrition advice. Whether sensational
headlines from the latest study or anecdotes from celebrities and
food bloggers, we're bombarded with "superfoods" and "best ever"
diets promising to help us lose weight, fight disease, and live
longer. At the same time, we live in an over-crowded food
environment that makes it easy to eat, all the time. The result is
an epidemic of chronic disease amidst a culture of nutrition
confusion-and copious food choices that challenge everyday eaters
just trying to get a healthy meal on the table. But the
exhilarating truth is that scientists know an astounding amount
about the power of food. A staggering 80% of chronic diseases are
preventable through modifiable lifestyle changes, and diet is the
single largest contributing factor. And we also know the secrets to
eating sustainably to protect our planet. In Food & Nutrition,
Harvard- and Columbia-trained nutrition scientist Dr. P.K. Newby
examines 134 stand-alone questions addressing "need to know"
topics, including how what we eat affects our health and
environment, from farm to fork, and why, when it comes to diet, the
whole is greater than the sum of its parts-and one size doesn't fit
all. At the same time, Newby debunks popular myths and food
folklore, encouraging readers to "learn, unlearn, and relearn" the
fundamentals of nutrition at the heart of a health-giving diet. Her
passion for all things food shines through it all, as does her love
of the power of science, technology, and engineering to help create
healthier diets for ourselves, and a more sustainable future for
the planet we share.
COVID-19 in the Environment: Impact, Concerns, and Management of
Coronavirus highlights the research and technology addressing
COVID-19 in the environment, including the associated fate,
transport, and disposal. It examines the impacts of the virus at
local, national, and global levels, including both positive and
negative environmental impacts and techniques for assessing and
managing them. Utilizing case studies, it also presents examples of
various issues around handling these impacts, as well as policies
and strategies being developed as a result. Organized into six
parts, COVID-19 in the Environment begins by presenting the nature
of the virus and its transmission in various environmental media,
as well as models for reducing the transmission. Section 2
describes methods for monitoring and detecting the virus, whereas
Sections 3, 4, and 5 go on to examine the socio-economic impact,
the environmental impact and risk, and the waste management impact,
respectively. Finally, Section 6 explores the environmental
policies and strategies that have comes as a result of COVID-19,
the implications for climate change, and what the long-term effects
will be on environmental sustainability.
Environmental Noise Pollution, Second Edition, addresses the key
debates surrounding environmental noise pollution, its modelling
and mitigation using examples from across the globe. Environmental
noise pollution is now an established concern in environmental and
public policy and is considered one of the most important
environmental stressors affecting public health throughout the
world. Thoroughly revised, this new edition includes updated global
case studies as well as new chapters on 'soundscapes and noise
mapping' and 'environmental noise and technology'. This book
examines environmental noise pollution, its health implications,
noise modelling, the role of strategic noise mapping for problem
assessment, major sources of environmental noise pollution, noise
mitigation approaches, and related procedural and policy
implications. Drawing on the authors' considerable research
expertise in the area, the book is a fully updated resource on this
major environmental stressor that crosses disciplinary, policy and
national boundaries.
Environmental pollution as a consequence of diverse human
activities has become a global concern. Urbanization, mining,
industrial revolution, burning of fossil fuels/firewood and poor
agricultural practices, in addition to improper dumping of waste
products, are largely responsible for the undesirable change in the
environment composition. Environmental pollution is mainly
classified as air pollution, water pollution, land pollution, noise
pollution, thermal pollution, light pollution, and plastic
pollution. Nowadays, it has been realized that with the increasing
environmental pollution, impurities may accumulate in plants, which
are required for basic human uses such as for food, clothing,
medicine, and so on. Environmental pollution has tremendous impacts
on phenological events, structural patterns, physiological
phenomena, biochemical status, and the cellular and molecular
features of plants. Exposure to environmental pollution induces
acute or chronic injury depending on the pollutant concentration,
exposure duration, season and plant species. Moreover, the global
rise of greenhouse gases such as carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide,
nitrous oxides, methane, chlorofluorocarbons and ozone in the
atmosphere is among the major threats to the biodiversity. They
have also shown visible impacts on life cycles and distribution of
various plant species. Anthropogenic activities, including the
fossil-fuel combustion in particular, are responsible for steady
increases in the atmospheric greenhouse gases concentrations. This
phenomenon accelerates the global heating. Studies have suggested
that the changes in carbon dioxide concentrations, rainfall and
temperature have greatly influenced the plant physiological and
metabolic activities including the formation of biologically active
ingredients. Taken together, plants interact with pollutants, and
cause adverse ecological and economic outcomes. Therefore, plant
response to pollutants requires more investigation in terms of
damage detection, adaptation, tolerance, and the physiological and
molecular responses. The complex interplay among other emerging
pollutants, namely, radioisotopes, cell-phone radiation,
nanoparticles, nanocomposites, heavy metals etc. and their impact
on plant adaptation strategies, and possibility to recover,
mitigation, phytoremediation, etc., also needs to be explored.
Further, it is necessary to elucidate better the process of the
pollutant's uptake by plant and accumulation in the food chain, and
the plant resistance capability against the various kinds of
environmental pollutants. In this context, the identification of
tolerance mechanisms in plants against pollutants can help in
developing eco-friendly technologies, which requires molecular
approaches to increase plant tolerance to pollutants, such as plant
transformation and genetic modifications. Pollutant-induced
overproduction of reactive oxygen species that cause DNA damage and
apoptosis-related alterations, has also been examined. They also
trigger changes at the levels of transcriptome, proteome, and
metabolome, which has been discussed in this book.
Environmental Applications of Microbial Nanotechnology: Emerging
Trends in Environmental Remediation discusses emerging trends and
recent advancements in environmental remediation. The book provides
environmental applications of microbial nanotechnology that helps
readers understand novel microbial systems and take advantage of
recent advances in microbial nanotechnologies. It highlights
established research and technology on microbial nanotechnology's
environmental applications, moves to rapidly emerging aspects and
then discusses future research directions. The book provides
researchers in academia and industry with a high-tech start-up that
will revolutionize the modern environmental applications of
microbial nanotechnology research.
Environmental Systems Science: Theory and Practical Applications
looks at pollution and environmental quality from a systems
perspective. Credible human and ecological risk estimation and
prediction methods are described, including life cycle assessment,
feasibility studies, pollution control decision tools, and
approaches to determine adverse outcome pathways, fate and
transport, sampling and analysis, and cost-effectiveness. The book
brings translational science to environmental quality, applying
groundbreaking methodologies like informatics, data mining, and
applications of secondary data systems. Multiple human and
ecological variables are introduced and integrated to support
calculations that aid environmental and public health decision
making. The book bridges the perspectives of scientists, engineers,
and other professionals working in numerous environmental and
public health fields addressing problems like toxic substances,
deforestation, climate change, and loss of biological diversity,
recommending sustainable solutions to these and other seemingly
intractable environmental problems. The causal agents discussed
include physical, chemical, and biological agents, such as per- and
polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), SARS-CoV-2 (the COVID-19 virus),
and other emerging contaminants.
Environmental Resilience and Transformation in Times of COVID-19:
Climate Change Effects on Environmental Functionality is a timely
reference to better understand environmental changes amid the
COVID-19 pandemic and the associated lockdowns. The book is
organized into five themes: (1) environmental modifications,
degradation, and human health risks; (2) water resources-planning,
management, and governance; (3) air quality-monitoring, fate,
transport, and drivers of socioenvironmental change; (4) marine and
lacustrine environment; and (5) sustainable development goals and
environmental justice. These themes provide an insight into the
impact of COVID-19 on the environment and vice versa, which will
help improve environmental management and planning, as well as
influence future policies. Featuring many case studies from around
the globe, this book offers a crucial examination of the
intersectionality between climate, sustainability, the environment,
and public health for researchers, practitioners, and policymakers
in environmental science.
The Impacts of Climate Change: A Comprehensive Study of Physical,
Biophysical, Social and Political Issues presents the very real
issues associated with climate change and global warming and how it
affects the planet and everyone on it. From a physical perspective,
the book covers such topics as population pressures, food issues,
rising sea-levels and coastline degradation, and health. It then
goes on to present social impacts, such as humanitarian issues,
ethics, adaptation, urban issues, local action, and socio-economic
issues. Finally, it addresses the political impacts, such as
justice issues and politics of climate change in different
locations. By offering this holistic review of the latest impacts
of climate change, the book helps researchers to better understand
what needs to be done in order to move toward renewable energy,
change societal habits, and move toward sustainable development.
Cost-benefit Analysis of Environmental Health Interventions clearly
articulates the core principles and fundamental methodologies
underpinning the modern economic assessment of environmental
intervention on human health. Taking a practical approach, the book
provides a step-by-step approach to assigning a monetary value to
the health benefits and disbenefits arising from interventions,
using environmental information and epidemiological evidence. It
summarizes environmental risk factors and explores how to interpret
and understand epidemiological data using concentration-response,
exposure-response or dose-response techniques, explaining the
environmental interventions available for each environmental risk
factor. It evaluates in detail two of the most challenging stages
of Cost-Benefit Analysis in 'discounting' and 'accounting for
uncertainty'. Further chapters describe how to analyze and critique
results, evaluate potential alternatives to Cost-Benefit Analysis,
and on how to engage with stakeholders to communicate the results
of Cost-Benefit Analysis. The book includes a detailed case study
how to conduct a Cost-Benefit Analysis. It is supported by an
online website providing solution files and detailing the design of
models using Excel.
Phytomanagement of Polluted Sites: Market Opportunities in
Sustainable Phytoremediation brings together recent and established
knowledge on different aspects of phytoremediation, providing this
information in a single source that offers a cutting-edge synthesis
of scientific and experiential knowledge on industrially
contaminated site restoration that is useful for both practitioners
and scientists. The book gives interested groups, both non-profit
and for-profit, methods to manage dumpsites and other contaminated
areas, including tactics on how to mitigate costs and even profit
from ecological restoration.
A central concern that has remained relevant in recent years has
been the management of waste and pollution. Improper disposal
methods such as open-air burning and unsafe recycling have led to
significant public and environmental health issues including
respiratory disorders, resource depletion, and infant mortality.
Adopting new waste management techniques is a necessity in order to
preserve the health of the global community and ecosystem. Waste
Management Techniques for Improved Environmental and Public Health
provides innovative insights into the advancing methods and
technologies of reducing pollution and promoting sustainable
development. The content within this publication examines
ecological technologies, risk assessment, and green operation. It
is designed for ecologists, biologists, researchers, enterprises,
academicians, policymakers, scientists, environmental engineers,
and students seeking current research on developing theories and
techniques within waste moderation and environmental protection.
Risk Factors for Cerebrovascular Disease and Stroke address the
relationship of a wide variety of vascular risk factors in the
spectrum of cerebrovascular diseases. An international group of
professionals the forefront of research and education, provide
their expertise about environmental and genetic determinants for
cerebrovascular disease and stroke. The authors aim to provide
information on developments of genetic, environmental and
lifestyle-related risk factors of various subtypes of stroke, and
MRI-markers of cerebrovascular disease. One in 2 men, and 1 in 3
women after the age of 40, will develop a stroke in their lifetime.
The burden of cerebrovascular disease extends far beyond that of
acute clinical events such as stroke, with "covert " vascular
injury on brain MRI being highly prevalent in older
community-dwelling persons. Therefore, improving our understanding
of the risk factors for stroke and cerebrovascular disease is of
paramount importance for improving prevention strategies. Secular
trends in stroke epidemiology, risk factors, and intermediate
markers (including carotid ultrasound, brain MRI and circulating
biomarkers) are presented. Cutting edge information on genetic,
environmental and lifestyle-related risk factors of various
subtypes of stroke and MRI-markers of cerebrovascular diseases are
displayed. This important book is an essential reference to
physicians interested in more effective primary prevention of
stroke.
The book presents a detailed assessment of the health science of
lead and the human health risk assessment models for lead s human
health impacts, followed by an account of various regulatory
efforts in the United States and elsewhere to eliminate or reduce
human toxic exposures to lead. The science of lead as presented
here covers releases of lead into the environment, lead s movement
through the environment to reach humans who are then exposed, and
the spectrum of toxic effects, particularly low-level toxic
effects, on the developing central nervous system of the very young
child. The section on human health risk assessment deals with
quantifying not only the dose-response relationships that underlie
toxic responses to lead in sensitive populations but also with the
likelihood of toxic responses vis-a-vis environmental lead at some
level of exposure. This section includes a treatment of computer
models of lead exposure, particularly those that use lead in whole
blood as a key measure. Various models convert lead intake via
various body compartments into measures of body lead burden. Such
measures are then directly related to severity of injury.
The final section of the book deals with past and present
regulatory efforts to control lead releases into the human
environment. Current control efforts present a mixed picture. The
most problematic issue is the continued presence of lead paint in
older housing and lead in soils of urban and mining industry
communities.
Comprehensive assessment of the three major facets of the public
health problem of lead: the voluminous science, the risk assessment
approaches, and approaches to controlling lead as a public health
problem.
Integration of the above three elements to provide a coherent
whole
Provides a single source of information that will be extremely
valuable to all professionals working in areas impacted by this
toxic substance"
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