Combined effect of lead exposure and allostatic load on cardiovascular disease mortality-a preliminary study

This study explores the combined effect of lead (Pb) exposure and an index of chronic physiological stress on cardiovascular disease mortality using data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) 1999-2008 linked to 1999-2014 National Death Index data. Chronic physiological stress was measured using the allostatic load (AL) index, which was formed by analyzing markers from the cardiovascular, inflammatory, and metabolic systems, with Pb levels, assessed using blood lead levels (BLL). The dataset was analyzed with statistical techniques to explore (a) the relationship between Pb exposure and AL, and (b) the combined role of Pb and AL on cardiovascular disease mortality. Results indicated that AL was more elevated in those with BLLs above the 50th percentile in the US population and that those with elevated AL were more likely to have high BLL. Finally, the interaction of AL and BLL significantly increased the likelihood of cardiovascular disease mortality. These findings highlight the need for considering the totality of exposures experienced by populations to build holistic programs to prevent Pb exposure and reduce stressors to promote optimal health outcomes and reduce cardiovascular mortality risk

Environmental Research and Public Health Communication Pathogens in Ornamental Waters: A Pilot Study

Abstract: In parks, ornamental waters of easy access and populated with animals are quite attractive to children and yet might hide threats to human health. The present work focuses on the microbiota of the ornamental waters of a Lisboa park, characterized during 2015. The results show a dynamic microbiota integrating human pathogens such as Klebsiella pneumoniae, Aeromonas spp. and Enterobacter spp., and also antibiotic resistant bacteria. K. pneumoniae and Aeromonas spp. were present as planktonic and biofilm organized bacteria. In vitro K. pneumoniae and Aeromonas spp. showed an enhanced ability to assemble biofilm at 25˝C than at 37˝C. Bacteria recovered from biofilm samples showed an increased antibiotic resistance compared to the respective planktonic counterparts

Risk Assessment for Children Exposed to Arsenic on Baseball Fields with Contaminated Fill Material

Children can be exposed to arsenic through play areas which may have contaminated fill material from historic land use. The objective of the current study was to evaluate the risk to children who play and/or spend time at baseball fields with soils shown to have arsenic above background levels. Arsenic in soils at the study sites located in Miami, FL, USA showed distinct distributions between infield, outfield, and areas adjacent to the fields. Using best estimates of exposure factors for children baseball scenarios, results show that non-cancer risks depend most heavily upon the age of the person and the arsenic exposure level. For extreme exposure scenarios evaluated in this study, children from 1 to 2 years were at highest risk for non-cancer effects (Hazard Quotient, HQ > 2.4), and risks were higher for children exhibiting pica (HQ > 9.7) which shows the importance of testing fill for land use where children may play. At the study sites, concentration levels of arsenic resulted in a range of computed cancer risks that differed by a factor of 10. In these sites, the child’s play position also affected risk. Outfield players, with a lifetime exposure to these arsenic levels, could have 10 times more increased chance of experiencing cancers associated with arsenic (i.e., lung, bladder, skin) in comparison to infielders. The distinct concentration distributions observed between these portions of the baseball fields emphasize the need to delineate contaminated areas in public property where citizens may spend more free time. This study also showed a need for more tools to improve the risk estimates for child play activities. For instance, more refined measurements of exposure factors for intake (e.g., inhalation rates under rigorous play activities, hand to mouth rates), exposure frequency (i.e., time spent in various activities) and other exposure factors (e.g., soil particulate emission rates at baseball play fields) can help pinpoint risk on baseball fields where arsenic levels may be a concern

Children Exposure-Related Behavior Patterns and Risk Perception Associated with Recreational Beach Use

Background: Oil spill chemicals (OSCs) result not only from the crude oil components but also from dispersants used in the clean-up activities, where some may result in adverse health effects under certain exposure and dosage conditions. One of the main populations of concern for exposure to OSCs are children, who are frequent beach users. Activities such as ingestion of and digging in sand can increase dermal and ingestion exposure. Longer times spent at the beach can also increase exposures for all routes. Objectives: The Beach Exposure and Child Health Study (BEaCHeS) was initiated to evaluate the risk of exposure to children from oil contaminants. Reported here are results for surveys collected, as a part of the project, to address exposure-related behavior patterns and risk perception for parents or guardians who visit the beach. Methods: Over 400 parental surveys were collected at four beaches, two in Miami and two in Texas, to evaluate children’s exposure related activities. Surveys consisted of three general sections: demographics, exposure, and risk perception. Surveys were analyzed in REDcap and Stata to evaluate demographic and regional differences on activities related to beach behavior and potential exposures to oil contaminants (e.g., how much time spent on beach, cleaning habits following beach activities). The statistical analysis included the mean and standard errors, along with regressions to evaluate associations between parameters. Results: Overall, the data showed high variability in how children play on the beach, influenced more by age and less by gender. Variations were also seen in certain variables by beach region (e.g., hygiene practices). By race, variations were seen in income, distance of travel to beach, and preferred method of communication for beach warning. Other important findings are reflected in the article. Discussion: The data presented here may prove useful for those evaluating children exposures to a variety of contaminants, chemical, or bacterial in origin. In addition, coastal managers may find the risk perception and general behaviors useful for planning and maintenance of beach areas

Children’s Exposure to Environmental Contaminants: An Editorial Reflection of Articles in the IJERPH Special Issue Entitled, “Children’s Exposure to Environmental Contaminants”

Children are at increased vulnerability to many environmental contaminants compared to adults due to their unique behavior patterns, increased contaminant intake per body weight, and developing biological systems. Depending upon their age, young children may crawl on the floor and may practice increased hand to mouth activity that may increase their dose-intake of specific contaminants that accumulate in dust and other matrices. Children are also smaller in size than adults, resulting in a greater body burden for a given contaminant dose. Because children undergo rapid transitions through particular developmental stages they are also especially vulnerable during certain growth-related time windows. A Special Issue was organized focused on the latest findings in the field of children’s environmental exposure for these reasons. This editorial introduces articles in this Special Issue and emphasizes their main findings in advancing the field. From the many articles submitted to this Special Issue from around the world, 23 were accepted and published. They focus on a variety of research areas such as children’s activity patterns, improved risk assessment methods to estimate exposures, and exposures in various contexts and to various contaminants. The future health of a nation relies on protecting the children from adverse exposures and understanding the etiology of childhood diseases. The field of children’s environmental exposures must consider improved and comprehensive research methods aimed at introducing mitigation strategies locally, nationally, and globally. We are happy to introduce a Special Issue focused on children’s environmental exposure and children’s health and hope that it contributes towards improved health of children

Federal Enactment of Healthy Homes Legislation in the United States to Improve Public Health

Not all homes across America are ‘healthy’ homes. This contributes to the poor health of Americans and exacerbates existing health conditions costing millions each year in health care cost. Newer research is being conducted into strategies to alleviate biological, chemical and physical hazards in the home, and various programs exist to assist the homeowner in making improvements in the quality of their home. Not every homeowner or renter nationwide or within community localities has access to these strategies or programs that could potentially improve their home environment and therefore the health of their family. The objective of this article is to propose elements of a policy to address this inconsistency and variation. This proposal centers around the federal enactment of a national policy demanding that each state implements a healthy homes program tailored to fit their specific state housing and health needs. Members of Congress from States that have successfully implemented healthy home programs should champion this policy. Organizations that recognize the impact of housing on health should support the development of a national healthy homes strategy. This article will discuss the need, outcomes, stakeholders, and minimum requirements of such a policy

Children’s Exposure to Environmental Contaminants: An Editorial Reflection of Articles in the IJERPH Special Issue Entitled, “Children’s Exposure to Environmental Contaminants”

Children are at increased vulnerability to many environmental contaminants compared to adults due to their unique behavior patterns, increased contaminant intake per body weight, and developing biological systems. Depending upon their age, young children may crawl on the floor and may practice increased hand to mouth activity that may increase their dose-intake of specific contaminants that accumulate in dust and other matrices. Children are also smaller in size than adults, resulting in a greater body burden for a given contaminant dose. Because children undergo rapid transitions through particular developmental stages they are also especially vulnerable during certain growth-related time windows. A Special Issue was organized focused on the latest findings in the field of children’s environmental exposure for these reasons. This editorial introduces articles in this Special Issue and emphasizes their main findings in advancing the field. From the many articles submitted to this Special Issue from around the world, 23 were accepted and published. They focus on a variety of research areas such as children’s activity patterns, improved risk assessment methods to estimate exposures, and exposures in various contexts and to various contaminants. The future health of a nation relies on protecting the children from adverse exposures and understanding the etiology of childhood diseases. The field of children’s environmental exposures must consider improved and comprehensive research methods aimed at introducing mitigation strategies locally, nationally, and globally. We are happy to introduce a Special Issue focused on children’s environmental exposure and children’s health and hope that it contributes towards improved health of children

Understanding the Influence of Children\u27s Behaviors and Household Characteristics on Soil/Dust Ingestion Rates

The presence of contaminants (such as heavy metals, pesticides, flame retardants) in soil and dust can pose a health risk to young children, especially as their bodies are still developing. Therefore, it is important to investigate the behaviors that could influence soil and dust ingestion rates in children. To gain insight into this issue, a survey was conducted in North Carolina, Arizona, and Florida. A total of 450 households are expected to participate, out of which 385 have participated so far. The ethnicity of Non-Hispanic (Black and White) children accounted for the majority of the participants (68%). The study recruited parents with children aged 6 months to 6 years and asked them questions about their children\u27s behavior in their natural home environment, taking into account the characteristics of their home dynamics. The survey included questions on the sociodemographic background of the parents, as well as several factors that could affect their children\u27s ingestion rates of soil and dust. Some of the questions asked were: Does your child put items in mouth? , How often does your child put items in his/her mouth? , What kind of items does your child put in mouth? , How frequently do you clean? , What is the method of cleaning? . Some summarized findings are presented here. For example, 54% of non-Hispanic washed their hands before meals or snacks, compared with 27% of Hispanics

Assessment for oil spill chemicals: Current knowledge, data gaps, and uncertainties addressing human physical health risk

Limited models are available to estimate human physical health risks (e.g., probability of outcomes such as lung disease, cancer, skin disease) from exposure to chemicals resulting from oil spills that may occur offshore and later impact coastline spills. An approach is presented to assess physical health risks from oil spills that involves establishing a platform capable of assessing aggregate health risk (via inhalation, ingestion, and dermal exposure routes). Gaps include the need to develop models reflecting oil spill concentration distributions given the influence from environmental, physical, biological and chemical factors. Human activities need to be quantified for different populations including emergency response workers, fishermen, shellfish consumers, and children who play at beaches that may be impacted by oil spills. Work is also needed in developing comprehensive toxicological profiles for the majority of chemicals - including dispersants found in oil spills - and to estimate toxicity from mixtures. •The human physical impacts (e.g., lung disease, cancers, skin disorders) from oil spill disasters varies across populations•There are challenges to deciphering and responding to the varied physical and sometimes intertwined psychosocial impacts•Various models are needed to refine the concentration of Oil Spill Chemicals (OSC) in media that populations contact•Exposure-related activity patterns for populations affected by oil spills need to be better determined•A predictive oil spill risk-platform addressing environmental contamination and potential public health risk is advantageou

A Review of the Field on Children’s Exposure to Environmental Contaminants: A Risk Assessment Approach

Background: Children must be recognized as a sensitive population based on having biological systems and organs in various stages of development. The processes of absorption, distribution, metabolism and elimination of environmental contaminants within a child’s body are considered less advanced than those of adults, making them more susceptible to disease outcomes following even small doses. Children’s unique activities of crawling and practicing increased hand-to-mouth ingestion also make them vulnerable to greater exposures by certain contaminants within specific environments. Approach: There is a need to review the field of children’s environmental exposures in order to understand trends and identify gaps in research, which may lead to better protection of this vulnerable and sensitive population. Therefore, explored here are previously published contemporary works in the broad area of children’s environmental exposures and potential impact on health from around the world. A discussion of children’s exposure to environmental contaminants is best organized under the last four steps of a risk assessment approach: hazard identification, dose-response assessment, exposure assessment (including children’s activity patterns) and risk characterization. We first consider the many exposure hazards that exist in the indoor and outdoor environments, and emerging contaminants of concern that may help guide the risk assessment process in identifying focus areas for children. A section on special diseases of concern is also included. Conclusions: The field of children’s exposures to environmental contaminants is broad. Although there are some well-studied areas offering much insight into children exposures, research is still needed to further our understanding of exposures to newer compounds, growing disease trends and the role of gene-environment interactions that modify adverse health outcomes. It is clear that behaviors of adults and children play a role in reducing or increasing a child’s exposure, where strategies to better communicate and implement risk modifying behaviors are needed, and can be more effective than implementing   changes in the physical environment