Chapter 17: Environmental Hazards and Human Health

Question 1

Zoonotic diseases

Answer 1

spead form animals to humans

- 61% of 1,415 pathogens are zoonotic

Question 2

Pollution

Answer 2

a substance in the environment that:

1. prevents funtioning of natural processes
2. produces undesirable environmental/health effects

Question 3

Pollutant

Answer 3

any material that causes pollution

- by-products of someone desirable action

Question 4

Environmental health

Answer 4

connections between environmental hazards and human disease or death

Question 5

Environment

Answer 5

the whole context of human life

Question 6

Hazard

Answer 6

anything that can cause:

1. injury, disease, death to humans
2. damage to personal or public property
3. deterioration or destruction of environmental parts

Question 7

Risk

Answer 7

the probability of suffering:

- injury, disease, death, or some loss as a result of exposure to a hazard

Question 8

Vulnerability

Answer 8

some people are more vulnerable to certain risks

Question 9

What does risk equal?

Answer 9

hazard x vulnerability

Question 10

Health

Answer 10

a state of complete physical, social, and mental well-being

Question 11

Morbidity

Answer 11

the incidence of disease in a population

Question 12

Mortality

Answer 12

the incidence of death in a population

Question 13

Epidemiology

Answer 13

the study of the presence, distribution, and prevention of deiseas in populations

Question 14

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)

Answer 14

1. Part of the Department of Health and Human Services
2. Provides tools and information to protect health
3. Is the primary agency responsible for health risk management and prevention

Question 15

Who has access to WHO?

Answer 15

all countries

Question 16

Epidemiologic transition

Answer 16

decreasing death rates that accompany development

Question 17

4 categories of hazards

Answer 17

cultural, biological, physical, chemical

Question 18

Cultural hazards

Answer 18

many factors that cause death or sidability are a matter of choice

Question 19

Biological hazards

Answer 19

Humans have always battled bacteria and viruses (black plague and typhus killed millions)
- vaccinations

Question 20

What percent of deaths are diseases responsible for?

Answer 20

20%

Question 21

Rotavirus

Answer 21

causes dehydration, but vaccines now exist

Question 22

Tuberculosis

Answer 22

infects 1/3 of all people

Question 23

Malaria

Answer 23

kills 655,000 people each year

Question 24

Physical hazards

Answer 24

natural disasters result from hydrological, meteorological, or geological forces

Question 25

Chemical hazards

Answer 25

Toxicity, exposure is through ingestion, breathing, the skin, direct use, or by accident

Question 26

Toxicity

Answer 26

condition of being harmful, deadly, or poisonous

Question 27

Carcinogens

Answer 27

cancer-causing agents

Question 28

One major pathway for hazards

Answer 28

poverty

Question 29

The biggest killer around the world

Answer 29

Poverty

Question 30

Underweight children

Answer 30

the world's main risk factor (strongly related to poverty)

Question 31

Wealthy nations have healthier populations

Answer 31

they die from diseases of old age (cancer, heart disease, etc.)

Question 32

What is the leading cause of death in the U.S.

Answer 32

Tobacco

Question 33

Where is tobacco use increasing and decreasing?

Answer 33

Tobacco use is increasing in developing countries and decreasing in developed countries

Question 34

Synergistic effects

Answer 34

smokers living in polluted air ave higher rates of lung disease

Question 35

How can tobacco use be decreased?

Answer 35

- Raising taxes - Warnings - Smoke-free workplaces - Non-smoking - Banning smoking on domestic flights

Question 36

Dose

Answer 36

concentration of the chemical in question

Question 37

Dose response

Answer 37

a linear response used to determine an accetable level of exposure

Question 38

Acute response

Answer 38

sudden and severe, acute toxicity from a single exosure or from multiple exposures in a short space of time (< 24hrs)

Question 39

Chronic response

Answer 39

chronic toxicity from repeated exposures, often at lower levels, to a substance over longer time period (months or years)

Question 40

Teratogenic

Answer 40

Teratology is the study of congenital malformations

Question 41

Mutagenic

Answer 41

1. ethylene oxide 2. ionizing radiation 3. hydrogen peroxide 4. benzene

Question 42

Carcinogen

Answer 42

a substance that is known to cause cancer

Question 43

Mutagen

Answer 43

a physical or chemical agent that changes the enetic material of an organism and increases the frequency of mutations above the natural background level

Question 44

Irritant

Answer 44

a substance that causes slight inflammation or other discomfort to the body

Question 45

Asphyxiant

Answer 45

Gas or vapor that can cause unconsciousness or death by suffocation due to lack of oxygen

Question 46

Synergism

Answer 46

the total effect is greater than the sum of the indicidual effects

Question 47

NFPA

Answer 47

based National Fire Protection Association. This helps determine what equipment should be used, procedures followed, or precautions taken during the initial stages of an emergency response