1) The document discusses environmental health and provides an overview of key topics in the field presented by Associate Professor Dr Rozita binti Hod including definitions of environmental health, how the environment impacts health, environmental hazards, and core concepts. 2) Some major environmental health issues in Malaysia are discussed such as children's environmental health, vector-borne diseases, water contamination, urban health issues, and air pollution. 3) Examples of environmental hazards that can impact health include biological, chemical, and physical hazards. Maintaining clean air, water, and proper sanitation are important for preventing disease.

1. OVERVIEW ON ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH
Associate Professor Dr Rozita binti Hod MD, McommMedicine, PhD
Department of Community Health,
Faculty of Medicine, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia
Presented at the MEDEX Preparation Course, National Institute of Health, Setia Alam, Selangor (31st March 2022)
1

2. OUTLINE OF TALK
 Definition of Environmental Health (EH)
 How environment impact our health
 Environmental Hazards
 Seven concepts of EH
 Children and environmental health
 Basic Ecosystem services (Air, Water, Food)
 Climate change and Health
 SDGs and EH
 Conclusion 2

3. DEFINITION OF ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH(1)
Science that studies how humans and nature
interact to affect human health. It addresses all
the physical, chemical, biological factors
external to a person, including assessment and
control of factors that can affect human health.
Source: WHO 2008
3

4. DEFINITION OF ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH (2)
Protection against environmental factors that
may adversely affect human health or the
ecological balances essential to long term
human health and environmental quality,
weather man made or natural .
Source: National Environmental Health
Association 1996
4

5. 5

6. 6

9. • Hazards are things in the environment that can
hurt human health.
• Biological hazards :virus, bacteria, parasite
• Chemical hazards: pesticides, industrial chemicals,
environmental tobacco smoke
• Physical hazards: heat, radiation (radiation
sickness from atom boms in Hiroshima & Nagasaki
(6 & 9th August 1945)
• Psychological hazards: stress
Environmental Hazards
9

10. 10
Source: ecology.wa.gov

11. 7 core concepts in EH
Source: CDC 2016, Uni Washington 2015. 11

12. • Toxicity is a measure on how toxic/dangerous a
substance is.
• Exposure:
Toxicity & Exposure
12
Source:Richard Olawoyin 2018

13. Dose response
Source:Toxicology Education
Foundation
13

14. 14

15. GENE AND ENVIRONMENT INTERACTION
15
Source:Yoshiaki Kido 2016

16. RISKS & BENEFITS
E.G Use of Pesticides
No bugs!
-Better looking fruits that are
more appealing
-Farmers gain more profit due to
bigger crops
Benefit
People consume fruits that are
contaminated with pesticide
and becomes sick
Pesticides can contaminate soil
and water
Animals also ingest the
pesticides and gets sick
Risks
16

17. ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE
Environmental justice involves identifying and addressing, as appropriate,
disproportionately high and adverse human health or environmental effects of an
agency’s programs, policies and activities on minority and low income
populations. (Source: Nuclear Regulatory Commission)
17

18. COMMUNITY RESOURCES AND ACTION
18

19. 19
Top 10 EH issues in MALAYSIA
1 Children environmental health (birth cohort study, impact of indoor environment).
2 Vector borne diseases (e.g. dengue,malaria)
3 Contamination of drinking water sources and emerging water pollutants [e.g.
endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs), pharmaceutical drugs (antiseptics,
antimicrobials)].
4 Urban health issues (housing and sanitation, poor drainage, air pollution,
migrants, urban poor, crime and security, related diseases).
5 Climate change adaptation strategies and neglected health issues.
6 Food safety and contamination issues (e.g. recycled cooking oil, untrained food
handlers especially foreigners, incomplete food labelling on food allergens, non-
compliance to food standards).
7 Human exposure to pesticidesa and other environmental chemicalsb (e.g.
e-waste, industries and lead in paint/consumer products).
8 Zoonotic diseases ( malaria (Plasmodium knowlesi), rabies, leptospirosis,
melioidosis, avian influenza, Japanese encephalitis, ).
9 Exposure to ionizing and non-ionizing radiation.
10 Air pollution ( to reduce PM2.5 and ozone levels in Malaysia to assess the
Source: National Environmental Health Action Plan NEHAP TWG10, MOH. 2022

20. 20

21. 21

22. AIR POLLUTION
22
Mobile sources
Stationary sources

23. DISEASES RELATED TO AIR POLLUTION
23

24. 24
Air Pollution Index
https://aqicn.org/map/malaysia/

25. AIR POLLUTANTS
The air pollutants included in Malaysia's API:
-ozone (O3),
-carbon monoxide (CO),
-nitrogen dioxide (NO2),
-sulphur dioxide (SO2),
-particulate matter with a diameter of less
than 2.5 micron (PM2.5) and particulate
matter with a diameter of less than 10
micron (PM10).
25

26. 26

27. CLEAN WATER & SANITATION
27

28. SOURCES OF WATER POLLUTION
Agriculture(logging,estate,farms)
Mining(tin,gold,cuprum)
Hydro dams
New industrialization
Housing area
28

29. 2) Erosion
-water catchment areas
-rivers
3)Effluent from:
-rubber/palm oil factories
-mining site
-industry area
-agriculture/farming areas
-domestic
29

30. 30

31. 31
Point Source Water
Pollution

32. 32
Physical-suspended solid that can
alter the taste, smell, color,
temperature.
Chemical-pesticides,
environmental oestrogens like
dioxins, OCP, chemical
compounds, heavy metals (lead,
arsenic, mercury,cadmium,
copper, chromium)
Biological:bacteria,virus,parasites
Water Pollutants

33. DISCOVERY OF CHOLERA
Fecal contaminated water in Soho, London
33
In 1854, Dr
John Snow
discovered
that the 600
deaths that
occurred in
Soho London,
was due to
contaminated
water from a
water pump in
Baker’s St,
Soho.
Cases
Water pump

34. 34

35. ENVIRONMENTAL HYGIENE AND SANITATION
35

36. 36

37. SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENTAL GOALS
37

38. 38

39. Source:Makrosafe 39
CONCLUSION

40. 40