scholarly journals Ecological Countermeasures for Pandemic Prevention: When Ecological Restoration is a Human Health Imperative

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jamie Reaser ◽  
Arne Witt ◽  
Gary M. Tabor ◽  
Peter Hudson ◽  
Raina K. Plowright
Keyword(s):  
Human Health ◽  
Ecological Restoration ◽  
Ecosystem Health ◽  
Restoration Ecology ◽  
Public Health Service ◽  
Disease Risk ◽  
Action Plan ◽  
Health Goals ◽  
Human Ecosystem ◽  
Point Action

Ecological restoration should be regarded as a public health service. Unfortunately, the lack of quantitative linkages between environmental and human health has limited recognition of these principle. Advent of COVID-19 pandemic provides the impetus for the further discussion. We propose ecological countermeasures as highly targeted, landscape-based interventions to arrest the drivers of land use-induced zoonotic spillover. We provide examples of ecological restoration activities that reduce zoonotic disease risk and a five-point action plan at the human-ecosystem health nexus. In conclusion, we make the case that ecological countermeasures are a tenent of restoration ecology with human health goals.

A Review of Adverse Effects of Road Traffic Noise on Human Health

2018 ◽  
Vol 17 (01) ◽  
pp. 1830001 ◽  
Author(s):  
Devi Singh ◽  
Neeraj Kumari ◽  
Pooja Sharma
Keyword(s):  
Human Health ◽  
Work Performance ◽  
Road Traffic ◽  
Disease Risk ◽  
Traffic Noise ◽  
Cardiovascular Disease Risk ◽  
Noise Pollution ◽  
Health Hazards ◽  
Road Traffic Noise ◽  
Rapid Urbanization

Noise pollution due to road traffic is a potential threat to human health. Since it is a global hazard, the rapid urbanization and exponential traffic growth have aggravated the problem. Population residing along the busy traffic lanes is continuously exposed to the sound levels which are above the permissible limits. This constant exposure to noise pollution is a cause of concern as it leads to several adverse impacts on human health. Traffic noise causes irritation and annoyance, sleep disturbances, cardiovascular disease, risk of stroke, diabetes, hypertension and loss of hearing. It results in decreased work performance. The present review highlights the serious health hazards of road traffic noise (RTN) which needs to be curbed. Preventive measures of noise pollution can help in combating noise-induced health hazards and increased work performance.

scholarly journals Ecosystem approaches to human health

2001 ◽  
Vol 17 (suppl) ◽  
pp. S69-S75 ◽  
Author(s):  
N. Ole Nielsen
Keyword(s):  
Human Health ◽  
Ecosystem Health ◽  
Life Support ◽  
Extreme Case ◽  
Ecosystem Approach ◽  
Policy Makers ◽  
Management Interventions ◽  
Irreducible Uncertainty ◽  
And Function ◽  
Ecosystem State

The promotion of human health must be embedded in the wider pursuit of ecosystem health. Interventions will be impaired if ecosystem-linked determinants of health are not taken into account. In the extreme case, if ecosystems lose their capacity for renewal, society will lose life support services. Essential features of ecosystem health are the capacity to maintain integrity and to achieve reasonable and sustainable human goals. An ecosystem approach to research and management must be transdisciplinary and assure participation of stakeholders. These requisites provide a means for science to better deal with the complexity of ecosystems, and for policy-makers and managers to establish and achieve reasonable societal goals. The ecosystem approach can determine links between human health and activities or events which disturb ecosystem state and function. Examples are: landscape disturbance in agriculture, mining, forestry, urbanization, and natural disasters. An understanding of these links can provide guidance for management interventions and policy options that promote human health. An ecosystem approach to management must be adaptive because of irreducible uncertainty in ecosystem function.

scholarly journals Trade and Deforestation Predict Rat Lungworm Disease, an Invasive-Driven Zoonosis, at Global and Regional Scales

2021 ◽  
Vol 9 ◽  
Author(s):  
Luz A. de Wit ◽  
Taylor H. Ricketts
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
Environmental Change ◽  
Human Health ◽  
Native Species ◽  
Disease Risk ◽  
Zoonotic Disease ◽  
Global Scale ◽  
Country Level ◽  
Rat Lungworm ◽  
Land Use Policies

The introduction of non-native species and deforestation are both important drivers of environmental change that can also facilitate the geographic spread of zoonotic pathogens and increase disease risk in humans. With ongoing trends in globalization and land-use conversions, introduced species and deforestation are ever more likely to pose threats to human health. Here, we used rat lungworm disease, an emerging zoonotic disease caused by Angiostrongylus cantonensis and maintained by invasive rats and snails, to explore how these two forms of environmental change can impact zoonotic disease risk. We used logistic regressions to examine the role of global trade in the introduction of A. cantonensis at a country level and used model estimates to predict the probability of introduction as a function of trade. We then used hurdle-based regression models to examine the association between deforestation and rat lungworm disease in two regions where A. cantonensis is already established: Hawaii and Thailand. At the global scale, we found the trade of horticultural products to be an important driver in the spread of A. cantonensis and that the majority of countries at high risk of future A. cantonensis introduction are islands. At country scales, we found deforestation to increase the per-capita risk of A. cantonensis exposure in Hawaii and Thailand. Our study provides a preliminary view of the associations between species introductions, deforestation, and risk of A. cantonensis exposure in people. Better understanding how these two widespread and overlapping forms of environmental change affect human health can inform international biosecurity protocols, invasive species management, and land-use policies.

scholarly journals Exploring Regenerative Co-benefits of Biophilic Design for People and the Environment

2021 ◽  
pp. 391-412
Author(s):  
Maria Beatrice Andreucci ◽  
Angela Loder ◽  
Beth McGee ◽  
Jelena Brajković ◽  
Martin Brown
Keyword(s):  
Human Health ◽  
Case Studies ◽  
Design Theory ◽  
Environmental Psychology ◽  
Biophilic Design ◽  
Health Goals ◽  
Apply Research ◽  
New Directions ◽  
Regenerative Design ◽  
Research And Policy

AbstractThere is an increasing awareness of the role that buildings, districts, and neighborhoods play on health in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic that coincides with pressing climate concerns. This has renewed attention to the benefits of nature for both human and climate health. Buildings, cities, and regions are attempting to align regenerative design principles with human health goals but often lack the tools and knowledge to do so. This is partly rooted in a failure to understand how to apply research and policy for different contexts as well as at different scales. It is also still uncertain exactly what types of nature can lead to which types of benefit, and for whom, despite long-standing research within the environmental psychology, sustainability, and design fields. This chapter outlines key research paradigms that influence the way we understand the benefits of nature, where biophilic design theory sits in this field, and how it can be and has been applied at different scales through two case studies at the building and city scale. This chapter ends with the proposal of new directions for integrating biophilic design into regenerative design and policy.

A REVIEW OF PROTOCOLS AND GUIDELINES ADDRESSING THE EXPOSURE OF OCCUPANTS TO ELECTROMAGNETIC FIELD RADIATION (EMFR) IN BUILDINGS

2021 ◽  
Vol 16 (2) ◽  
pp. 55-81
Author(s):  
Shabnam Monadizadeh ◽  
Charles J. Kibert ◽  
Jiaxuan Li ◽  
Junghoon Woo ◽  
Ashish Asutosh ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Electromagnetic Field ◽  
Human Health ◽  
Health Effects ◽  
Action Plan ◽  
Low Frequency ◽  
Cellular Level ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Ir Radiation ◽  
Health Authorities ◽  
Field Radiation

HIGHLIGHTS ABSTRACT A significant share of the technology that has emerged over the past several decades produces electromagnetic field (EMFR) radiation. Communications devices, household appliances, industrial equipment, and medical equipment and devices all produce EMFR with a variety of frequencies, strengths, and ranges. Some EMFR, such as Extremely Low Frequency (ELF), Radio Frequency (RF), and Ionizing Range (IR) radiation have been shown to have harmful effects on human health. Depending on the frequency and strength of the radiation, EMFR can have health effects at the cellular level as well as at brain, nervous, and cardiovascular levels. Health authorities have enacted regulations locally and globally to set critical values to limit the adverse effects of EMFR. By introducing a more comprehensive field of EMFR study and practice, architects and designers can design for a safer electromagnetic (EM) indoor environment, and, as building and construction specialists, will be able to monitor and reduce EM radiation. This paper identifies the nature of EMFR in the built environment, the various EMFR sources, and its human health effects. It addresses European and US regulations for EMFR in buildings and provides a preliminary action plan. The challenges of developing measurement protocols for the various EMFR frequency ranges and determining the effects of EMFR on building occupants are discussed. This paper argues that a mature method for measuring EMFR in building environments and linking these measurements to human health impacts will foster occupant health and lead to the adequate development of safeguards for occupants of buildings in future research.

Ecosystem Health and Human Health

2002 ◽  
pp. 189-219 ◽  
Author(s):  
L. Vasseur ◽  
P.G. Schaberg ◽  
J. Hounsell ◽  
P.O. Ang ◽  
D. Cote ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Human Health ◽  
Ecosystem Health

scholarly journals Using the SMART-EST Goals in Lifestyle Medicine Prescription

2020 ◽  
Vol 14 (3) ◽  
pp. 271-273
Author(s):  
Nicole D. White ◽  
Vicki Bautista ◽  
Thomas Lenz ◽  
Amy Cosimano
Keyword(s):  
Goal Setting ◽  
Disease Risk ◽  
Action Plan ◽  
Health Behavior Change ◽  
Lifestyle Modifications ◽  
Patient Centered ◽  
Lifestyle Medicine ◽  
Chronic Disease Risk ◽  
Setting Process ◽  
Medicine Prescription

Lifestyle modifications can effectively decrease chronic disease risk but studies show little to no time during patient encounters is spent on lifestyle medicine counseling. The SMART-EST goal framework facilitates both a rich discussion of lifestyle medicine and a comprehensive patient-centered action plan for health behavior change. The tenets of the SMART-EST goal-setting process are discussed.

New Technologies, New Challenges for Human Rights? The Work of the Council of Europe

2020 ◽  
Vol 27 (3) ◽  
pp. 335-344
Author(s):  
Laurence Lwoff
Keyword(s):  
Human Rights ◽  
Human Health ◽  
New Technologies ◽  
Action Plan ◽  
Human Beings ◽  
Council Of Europe ◽  
Strategic Action ◽  
Protective Mechanisms ◽  
Protection Of Human Rights ◽  
Fit For Purpose

Abstract Convergence of emerging technologies (e.g. biotechnologies, information and cognitive technologies) has opened new perspectives for progress with regard to human health. However, these technologies also open new possibilities for interventions on human beings, which may be more invasive, and possibly affect and modify individuals. Established practices in the field of biomedicine are also evolving in a way that exerts pressure on existing protective mechanisms. Thus, consideration is required as to whether existing human rights provisions are still fit for purpose or whether there is a need to re-examine, clarify or re-enforce them or even a need to identify new human rights and protective measures. This article gives an overview of the main issues considered by the Committee on Bioethics of the Council of Europe to develop a Strategic Action Plan aimed at ensuring appropriate protection of human rights in the developments in biomedicine, promoting thereby progress for human health.

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