Lecture 3- Health of the Environment

Question 1

What does environmental health address

Answer 1

Physical, chemical and biological factors external to a person and all the related factors impacting behaviors

Question 2

What is one of the largest risks to public health and causes 7 million deaths per year

Answer 2

Air pollution

Question 3

Poor drainage and irrigation is linked to what vector born disease

Answer 3

Malaria

Question 4

What are some impacts of climate change

Answer 4

Compromises the ecological and environmental integrity of living systems by:

Inducing lifestyle changes in pathogens, vectors and reservoirs, new and emerging diseases, trophic cascades, interfering with synchrony of species in habitat, modifying or destroying habitats

Question 5

What has the WHO deemed as the biggest health threat facing humanity

Answer 5

Climate change

Question 6

What is the relationship between climate change and socioeconomic status

Answer 6

Those contributing the least to climate change (lower income) are getting most heavily affected by it. Living in areas with poor air and water quality, vector distribution, etc

Question 7

How has climate change impacted health, death and illness

Answer 7

Increasingly frequent extreme weather events like heatwaves, storms, floods

Disruption of food systems

Increases in zoonoses and food and water and vector borne diseases

Mental health issues

Question 8

How many additional deaths is climate change expected to cause between 2030-2050

Answer 8

250,000 additional deaths per year

Question 9

How does climate change impact diseases like malaria

Answer 9

Affects transmission season, longevity of mosquito and the development of malaria parasites in the mosquito and transmission

Question 10

Climate change impact on nutrition

Answer 10

Leads to increased malnutrition

Question 11

What is malaria

Answer 11

The worlds most important and deadly tropical mosquitos borne parasitic disease

Question 12

Who approved the first malaria vaccine in October 2021

Answer 12

World Health Organization (WHO)

Question 13

How will climate change impact transmission and distribution of malaria

Answer 13

Increase in global temperature will enhance the transmission rates and widen geographical distribution

Increase spread of disease in current malaria endemic areas and reemergence in areas where it was under control

Question 14

How has malaria been eliminated in the past

Answer 14

Better socioeconomic conditions, improved irrigation and drainage, adoption of new farming methods, behavioral changes and access to better healthcare

Question 15

How does temperature, rainfall and humidity impact malaria

Answer 15

Increase in temperature, rainfall, and humidity may cause a proliferation in malaria carrying mosquitoes at higher altitudes

Question 16

Lower altitudes and warmer temperature affect on malaria

Answer 16

Warmer temperatures will alter the growth cycle of parasite in mosquito enabling it to develop faster, increasing transmission

Question 17

Health of plants are directly related to

Answer 17

Drought/rainfall

Question 18

How does temperature affect diseases of plants

Answer 18

Can increase spread of pests and pathogens therefore increase use of fungicides and pesticides

Question 19

Fungal pathogens and plants

Answer 19

Threaten wheat, soybean and potatoes which are important staple calorie crops and food security

Question 20

How is rust fungus impacting soybean

Answer 20

Rust fungus can travel globally on air currents, can cause 80% yield losses

Increased frequency of severe weather may make this pathogen harder to predict and mitigate against

Question 21

How do extreme heat waves impact health

Answer 21

Increased incidence of heat stroke, dehydration, cardiac arrest, respiratory distress

People under stress due to climate are more susceptible to infectious diseases

Question 22

How many people enter poverty from health shocks and stress

Answer 22

100 million each year

Question 23

Relationship between biodiversity and health

Answer 23

Diversity of microorganisms, flora and fauna provide extensive benefits for biological health and pharmacological sciences so loss of biodiversity may limit the discovery of potential diseases

Question 24

What is biodiversity

Answer 24

Biological variety in all forms, from genetic make up of plants and animals to cultural diversity

Question 25

Biodiversity and ecosystems

Answer 25

Human health depends on ecosystem products and services like fresh water, food, and fuel sources and biodiversity loss can have significant impact on human health if eco systems are no longer adequate

Question 26

Biodiversity and nutrition

Answer 26

Biodiversity influences nutrition based on its influence on world food production. Ensures sustainable productivity of soils and provides genetic resources for crops, livestock and marine species

Question 27

Biodiversity and infectious disease

Answer 27

Human activities altering ecosystems and biodiversity. Reduce abundance of some organisms, cause population growth in others, modify the interactions among organisms and alter interactions between organisms and their physical and chemical environments.

Question 28

What are some major examples of how the environment can impact infectious diseases

Answer 28

Deforestation, land-use change, waste management, uncontrolled urbanization, resistance to pesticides, climate variability and change, migration and international travel and trade, accidental or intentional human introduction to pathogens

Question 29

Bats and Hendra

Answer 29

Food shortages in Australia cause bats to break into smaller groups and near readily available food like farms and urban gardens

Deforestation has caused bats to make new habitats, bats in these novel environments excrete more Hendra virus

Question 30

What is hendra virus

Answer 30

Deadly zoonotic disease that affects humans and horses

Question 31

What is a tropic cascade

Answer 31

Effects of removal or addition of keystone species that propagate through food webs across multiple trophic levels

Question 32

When do trophic cascades occur

Answer 32

When predator limit the density and/or behavior of their prey and thereby enhance survival of the next lower trophic leve;

Question 33

What is the trophic cascade effect between wolves, deer and gass

Answer 33

Wolves if removed from the environment increase population of deer and decrease grass/trees

Wolves 3rd level reintroduced can prey upon deer 2nd level and therefore preserve grass/trees which is 1st trophic level

Question 34

What is a keystone species

Answer 34

Are present when a single species or just a few species play a crucial role in maintaining the structure of an ecological community

Determine the types and numbers of various other species in community

Question 35

When do keystone species occur

Answer 35

Where the species diversity and diversity of a predator-prey relationships within the food web are modest or low

Question 36

What happens with disappearance of keystone species

Answer 36

Results in complete rearrangement of food web, this is a trophic cascade

Question 37

Sea otters and kelp example

Answer 37

Sea otter is keystone species with sea urchins as its main food source

Sea urchins graze on kelp-abundance is related to abundance of sea urchins

Sea otter population wiped out by human hunting the population of sea urchins grew and decimated kelp forests.

Reintroduction of sea otters and no hunting led to recovery of kelp forests

However evidence shows the decline of the kelp stock contributed to starvation and extinction of Steller’s sea cow