What is

Environmental Health?
Inside

Outside Outside

Source : Integrated Environmental Health

University of Washington
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What is the environment?
The trees, air, &
soil around us

ALL the places we

live, work & play

Our fields,
farms & the
food we grow

Our oceans, lakes,

and rivers

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What is health?
Nutritious foods help us
stay healthy.

Regular exercise helps

keep us strong and
healthy.

Doctors, hospitals &

medicines help us get
healthy if we’re sick.

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 Environmental Health?
Air Sunlight

Food Noise

Water Soil

The study of how the environment

affects your health.
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 Good Things Around Us
Oxygen
in the air Beautiful
scenery
to look at
Nutrients
in food

Family &
Medicine friends
& vitamins

There are many things around us that

help us stay healthy.
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 Hazards
Bacteria
& viruses
Harmful
chemicals
Tobacco
smoke

Stress

Loud noises

A hazard is anything in the environment

that can hurt you or make you sick.
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Environmental Health Careers
People working in the Work for
field of environmental corporations
making sure
health . . . workplaces
are safe for
workers

Work as
scientists in
research Work for the
labs government
writing
regulations
and studying
pollution

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The 7 Core Concepts

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 A Toxic Word Game
Toxic means _____________________.
poisonous or dangerous

Toxic_____
ology is the study of poisons.

Toxic___
ity is a measure of how
dangerous a chemical is.

Integrated Environmental Health Middle School Project • University of Washington © 2005 10

 A Toxicity Scale
Signal Words Symbol on
Toxicity Rating
on Package Package
Highly Toxic DANGER or
POISON

Moderately Toxic WARNING

Slightly Toxic CAUTION

Not Toxic none

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How would you rate these products?
Toxicity Rating

Highly Toxic

Moderately Toxic

Slightly Toxic

Not Toxic

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And the answers are…
Toxicity Rating

Highly Toxic

Moderately Toxic

Slightly Toxic

Not Toxic

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 Exposure is

The total amount of a hazard that comes

in direct contact with your body.
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 The 3 parts of exposure
The The The
Source Environmental Contact
of the hazard Pathway (inhaled fumes)
(bus exhaust) (air)

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Which route will the hazards take?

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 Route #1: Inhalation
Inhalation:

Breathing. When
chemicals enter the
body through this
route of exposure,
they can get stuck in
the lungs and/or be
taken up into the
bloodstream.

Integrated Environmental Health Middle School Project • University of Washington © 2005 18

Route #2: Ingestion
Ingestion:

Swallowing (usually
by eating or drinking).
When chemicals enter
the body through this
route of exposure,
they can easily be
taken up into the
bloodstream.

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Route #3: Dermal Absorption

Dermal Absorption:
Absorbing a chemical through any part of the skin, including
the eyes. When chemicals come in contact with the skin, they
can sometimes enter the bloodstream through this route of
exposure.

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What is dose? Exposure
X

X
X

X
X
X X Dose X
X X
X

X X

X = hazard

Dose is the amount of a hazard that

actually enters your body.
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 Dose can depend on…
Duration of Frequency of Body Size:
Exposure: Exposure: How big or
How long? How often? small are you?

L
M
S S

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Duration of Exposure

30 minutes of
sun exposure
might not have
any harmful
effects.

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Duration of Exposure

But 4 hours of
sun exposure
might be very
harmful indeed!

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 Dose & Body Size
Dose can depend on how big or
small you are. To understand how,
let’s take three different size flasks
and fill them with water. Imagine
each one represents a different
human body - one small, one
L
medium, and one large.
M
s s

Integrated Environmental Health Middle School Project • University of Washington © 2005 26

 A Dose Experiment
Now we will take a
dropper of an imaginary
hazardous substance and
put 3 drops in each flask.
What will happen? How
will each flask look after
the 3 dark purple drops
have been added?

L
s M
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A Dose Experiment - Step 1

L
s M
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A Dose Experiment - Step 2

L
s M
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A Dose Experiment - Step 3

L
s M
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Dose/Response Relationship
1 can of pop in 3 cans of pop
15 minutes in 15 minutes

The larger the dose, the more extreme

the response will be.
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Individual Susceptibility

Why are these people

more likely to be
harmed by exposure to
a hazard than the man
below?

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Individual Susceptibility
Pregnant women Elderly people
and their whose defense
developing mechanisms are
babies less efficient

Sick people who Infants and

have weakened children who
immune are still
systems developing

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Genes & Susceptibility
Your genes can also
make you more or less
susceptible to harm
from an environmental
hazard. For example,
some people are more
likely to get sick when
they are exposed to
certain kinds of
pesticides.

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What are the risks & benefits?

1 3
2

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 Risks & Benefits
What are the risks and benefits when grape
growers use pesticides on their crops?

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 Risks & Benefits
BENEFITS RISKS
•No bugs! •People ingest
pesticides with the
•Better looking fruit fruit and get sick
that is more visually
appealing •Pesticides get into
dirt and water
•Bigger crops so
farmers can make •Animals ingest
more profit pesticides and get sick

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What is environmental justice?
Environmental
Justice (EJ) means
that everyone has a
right to live in an
environment that
doesn’t make them
sick, regardless of
their race, culture, or
income.

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 The EJ Process
Who is Empower
producing Establish a dialog
between the community
the hazard? members to bring
decision makers,
scientists, and the about change.
affected
Who is being
community.
exposed?
Share information
and decisions with
Who are the community
decision members.
makers?

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Where can you go for information?

Schools
Libraries
City hall Universities
State agencies
Federal agencies

Doctors
Nurses
Hospitals
Caution! Health Department

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 How can you take action?

Write a letter to Inform your

a newspaper neighbors

Make a
Call or write an
documentary about
elected official
the problem

Organize a Create a petition

community and get
meeting signatures

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Any Questions?

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