Environmental health Part III

Learning objectives Common for Part 1 -- Part 3 In what ways does our environment affect our health? What is pollution? What are some forms that it can take? How do these affect our health? What is biomagnification and bioaccumulation? Why does biomagnification of mercury make eating seafood risky, especially for children and pregnant women? What are the health risks of lead? How does lead enter our bodies? Are there health risks associated with plastics? What indoor pollutants may we be at risk from? Are there known risks of using cell phones (besides walking into a lightpost on the sidewalk)? What is ‘global climate change’? What causes it? What are some of the risks of climate change to our health?

Some chemicals from plastics are hormone / endocrine disrupters Phthalates and Bisphenol A (BPA) Breast cancer Genital development in boys Reduced intellectual development

3 #3 plastics may also contain BPA

Reducing exposure to BPA BPA found in 93% urine samples How to reduce your exposure:

Cell phones Cell phones emit electromagnetic energy and MAY be carcinogenic. Studies on use have had mixed results. WHO estimates there are 6.9 billion subscriptions worldwide, so any health effects may be common Risk decreases with distance, so texting may not hurt your brain as much as talking with it next to your ear.