title: Strategies for addressing global environmental health concerns.
abstract: While each region of the world faces unique public health challenges, environmental threats to vulnerable populations in Asia constitute a significant global public health challenge. Environmental threats to health are widespread and are increasing as nations in the region undergo rapid industrial development. One of the major predictors of ill health is poverty. Regional poverty puts large populations at risk for ill health, which exacerbates poverty and increases the exposure risk to environmental factors, such as pollution and disease. Patterns of illness have changed dramatically in the last century, and will continue to change in this century. Chemical toxicants in the environment, poverty, and little or no access to health care are all factors contributing to life-threatening diseases. Therefore, it is vital that we develop a better understanding of the mechanisms and interactions between nutrition, infectious disease, environmental exposures, and genetic predisposition in order to develop better prevention methods.
authors.affiliation: NIH-National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, Research Triangle Park, North Carolina, USA. suk@niehs.nih.gov
authors.forename: William A
authors.initials: WA
authors.lastname: Suk
authors.forename: E Ann
authors.initials: EA
authors.lastname: Davis
mesh_terms: D016902:Air Pollution, Indoor; D001151:Arsenic / Q000633:toxicity; D018533:Biomass; D002648:Child; D004777:Environment; D004781:Environmental Exposure; D004782:Environmental Health; D004785:Environmental Pollutants; D004787:Environmental Pollution; D020022:Genetic Predisposition to Disease; D014943:Global Health; D006801:Humans; D011634:Public Health; D012306:Risk; D012307:Risk Factors
chemical_list: D004785:Environmental Pollutants; D001151:Arsenic