ENVIRONMENTAL TOXICOLOGY

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 INTRODUCTION
Environmental toxicology is a multi- disciplinary field of science concerned with the study of harmful effects of various
chemicals on human health, synthetic and natural pollutants in the environment.
It is categorized into two types namely Ecotoxicology and Environmental Health Toxicology.

Environmental Toxicology

Ecotoxicology Environmental Health Toxicology

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 ECOTOXICOLOGY:
§ It is the study of harmful effects of the toxic chemicals on biological organisms, especially at the
population, community, ecosystem and biosphere levels.

§ It effect mainly the community, biosphere and ecosystem level.

§ It is a multidisciplinary field, which integrates toxicology and ecology.

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 ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH TOXICOLOGY:
§ It mainly deals with the study of adverse and harmful effects of environmental chemicals on human health.
§ It is associated with exposure to toxic chemicals occurring in the natural, work and living environment.
§ People exposed to environmental contaminants such as industrial can develop conditions such as cancer,
asthma, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

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 LITERATURE SURVEY/REVIEW:
•Environmental toxicology emerged in response to the growing
awareness in the second part of the 20th century that chemicals
emitted to the environment can trigger hazardous effects in organisms
living in this environment, including humans.
•Another term widely used to refer to this field of study is
ecotoxicology. The main distinction is the inclusion of human health as
an endpoint in environmental toxicology, whereas ecotoxicology is
restricted to ecological endpoints.
•Since the current book includes human health as an assessment
endpoint for environmental contaminants, the term environmental
toxicology is preferred over ecotoxicology.

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Toxicology is the study of the adverse effects of chemicals and physical agents on living
organisms. The term Ecotoxicology which was first coined by Truhaut in 1969 has
come to mean the study of the fate effect of a toxic compound on an ecosystem. In some
cases the major difference between Classical Toxicology and Ecotoxicology is the
species selected for the toxicological tests; in Ecotoxicology acute toxicity is measured
on the water flea , while in Classical Toxicology the test animal in the laboratory is the
rat.​

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 How to reduce Exposure to Toxin
•Reach for a mop: Lead, pesticides and flame retardants are present in dust. Sweeping or dusting
may spread toxins into the air instead of removing them from your home.

•Don’t spray bugs: Avoid pesticides, which are toxic chemicals made to kill unwanted insects or
weeds. Instead, keep your home clear of food crumbs and spills. Use baits and traps instead of
sprays, dusts or bombs. Avoid using chemical tick-and-flea collars or dips for your pets.

•Avoid dry-cleaning clothes: Most cleaners use a chemical called perchloroethylene (PERC), which
can pollute the air in your home. Use water instead. Most clothes labeled as “dry clean only” can be
washed with water. Hand wash them or ask your dry cleaner to wet clean them for you.

•Check air quality forecasts: Exercise as far away as possible from sources of air pollution (such as
traffic or factories) and do not exercise on bad air quality days.

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 Individual actions alone cannot prevent exposure
to substances in the environment that harm our
health. These can only be prevented by public
CONCLUSION:
policies that stop chemical pollution. We can use
the above mentioned ideas by use to reduce
exposure to toxins and prevent our environment.

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REFERENCES:

Basic Environmental Toxicology - By Lorris G.

Cockerham, Barbara S. Shane

Environmental Toxicology - By Ad Ragas, Reviewed by

Kees van Gestel, Nico van Straalen

Environmental Toxicology - By Paul B. Tchounwou

Wikipedia, Google Scholar

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THANK YOU!

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