Prevention of chemical pollution through health promotion and awareness targeted at faith based gatherings in Lagos Nigeria

1. Exercising Dominion Over the Earth
Chemical Pollution (Source, Effect &
Control)
By
Dr. (Lady) Chinwe Mogo
All saints Anglican Church
41 Road, Festac Town, Lagos
Contact me: felichimogo@yahoo.com
LinkedIn: Felicia Chinwe Mogo
At
The First Mother’s Facilitators Workshop
City of God, Majiyagbe Layout, Ipaja.
February 28, 2009

2. INTRODUCTION
MEANING OF POLLUTION:
Pollution is an umbrella term that encompasses a
wide array of assaults on the environment.
Broadly defined, it is best understood as the
introduction of substances into the natural
environment that cannot readily be assimilated
or rendered harmless by normal biological
processes(Crump 1991,Rodda,1991)

3. INTRODUCTION Cont’d
The planetory ecosystem is maintained
by large scale circulatory processes,
such as the hydrological cycle, air
circulation system and ocean currents,
pollution released in one place is
seldom contained, typically
,pollutants are circulated over
areas(even globally).

4. INTRODUCTION cont’d
People usually associate pollution with only large-
scale contamination and environmental disasters ,
yet the products and activities that form the
backdrop to our everyday lives - electronics,
cleaners, beauty products, food packaging - are a
significant source of daily personal chemical
exposure that accumulates over time. Pollution
Comes Home and Gets Personal in most cases as
proven with Women's Experience of Household
Chemical Exposure.

5. 1. Natural processes : for example volcanic eruption and
erosion, soil, sediments , plant etc.
2. Chemical Processes(ANTHROPOGENIC): Since industrial
revolution, human activities have produced pollution
dramatically in increasing rate and persistence.
Chemical pollution occurs when human use, produce,
or dispose of chemicals that cause harm to human and
other living organisms( that is toxic, or hazardous
chemicals). A chemical may cause harm
immediately(acute poison) after a longer period of
exposure( chronic poison), or even in the next
generation( a trans-generational poison).
CLASSIFICATION OF CHEMICAL POLLUTANTS BASED ON
BIOTIC/ABIOTIC ORIGIN

6. CLASSIFICATION BASED ON STATE/FORM
1. AIR POLLUTION( emissions from factories,
automobile, household from cooking, sweeping etc:
 Gas
 Particulate Emissions
2. WATER POLLUTION:
 Runoff and dumping(leachetes )
 Industrial(effluents)
 Sewage effluent.
3. LAND POLLUTION:
 Dumping and disposal of waste of all kinds.

7. SOURCES OFCHEMICAL POLLUTION IN OUR ENVIRONMENT
1.GLOBAL SOURCES:
Human made substances of extreme toxicity such as
pesticides, plastics, synthetic chemicals products,
and
Radioactive wastes Dumps. Over the globe, oceans
and waterways have become dumping grounds,
wastelands of extreme and chronic toxicity dot
global landscape account for more and more of the
pollutants.
.

8. MAJOR GLOBAL CHEMICAL POLLUTION
INCIDENTS
 Minamata,Japan : human methyl mercury poisoning
through eating contaminated fish
 Casco Bay incident in U.K: chemicals from
abandoned battery plant was releasing into the
water bodies after 100 years.
 Love carnal incident in U.S.A: chemical waste buried
over many years led to birth of deformed and
premature babies.
 Toxic waste dump in Koko Nigeria with the alleged
date of Mr. Nana from respiratory disease.....and
many more

9. ADDITIONAL SOURCES IN OUR IMMEDIATE
ENVIRONMENT TODAY
2.LOCAL SOURCES OF POLLUTANT:
Process food & Additives e.g.
monosodium glutamate
Cosmetics
Automobile
Preservatives
Indoor pollution from generating sets,
Kerosene lanterns and stoves, gas
cookers etc

10. EXPOSURE ROUTE FOR
POLLUTANT
The Skin
The Lungs
Gastrointestinal Tract

11. MODE OF HARM OF CHEMICAL
POLLUTANTS
Chemical pollutants undermine the integrity and
health of animals, human and the ecosystem.
Different chemicals harm different systems of the
body in different ways(for example by damaging the
immune systems or causing an imbalance in sex
hormones.Because people differ in their genetic
makeup and history of exposure to toxic chemicals,
certain people are particularly susceptible to harm
from particular toxic chemicals. Exposure to
combination of chemicals may cause more harm
than single toxicants.

12. MODE OF CHEMICAL POLLUTION con’d
Harm may be caused by extraordinary small amounts
of certain chemicals, such as dioxins and furan part
of the dirty dozen which is about the most toxic
chemical known. Harm may be temporary,
permanent or fatal.
Men and women respond differently due to economic,
biology and gender roles. They are susceptible to
different health effects from exposure to toxins and
other pollutants)

13. Divergence effect of chemical toxins by gender
Women everywhere have primary
responsibility for meeting the daily
needs of their families. This means
women are in the front line of indoor
exposure to toxins in the
environment.

14. DETERMINANTS OF FATE OF WOMEN
1.BIOLOGICAL FACTOR:
Bioaccumulation in fatty tissues.e.g in the breast. women generally have a
higher body fat percentage than men for example e.g. DDT(. , Dichloro-
Diphenyl-Trichloroethane) ,dioxins , and other chlorinated , heavy metals
etc.chemicals causing breast cancer and endometriosis because of their
feminine biology.
High metabolic rate of some toxicants : research identified differences in
internal exposure of men and women to benzene due to physiological and
biochemical gender differences. Women were found to have metabolism
for benzene than men. Hence the conclusion that physicochemical gender
differences result in women metabolizing 23–26% more benzene than men
when subject to the same exposure scenario even though benzene blood
concentration levels are generally higher in men. These results suggest
that women may be at significantly higher risk for certain effects of
benzene exposure.
2. OCCUPATIONAL FACTOR:
Women in low income group occupation are often exposed to toxic chemicals
for example working in agricultural fields & factories where pesticides
/herbicides & solvents are used.

15. DETERMINATS OF FATE OF WOMEN Cont’d
3. DOMESTIC FACTOR: Females die prematurely
every year by inhaling poisonous fumes as they
cook or heat their homes with these organic fuels.
4. SOCIAL FACTOR: Social location which also often
has a real locational correlation, women are much
more likely than man to have early and prolonged
exposure to water borne pollutants. Pollution in
the foodchain, and household pollutants including
indoor air pollution.

16. SOME KNOWN EFFECTS ON WOMEN
 Out right death.
 Respiratory tract diseases
 Cancer(breast etc)
 The study tracks women from pregnancy to childbirth, and monitors the
babies' consumption of breast milk and observed a relationship between
nervous disorder and methyl mercury consumption through fish.
 Miscarriage and birth to abnormal babies.
 Infertility: from development of endometriosis: a common medical
condition in women in which endometrial cells are deposited in areas
outside the Uterine cavity.
 Respiratory track diseases from smoke in enclosed spaces.
 diabetes

17. SOME KNOWN RISKS TO WOMEN cont’d
DDT, PCBs, concentrate in mammals, and in human
breast milk. Males typically have far higher levels, as
females reduce their concentration by transfer to their
offspring through breast feeding.
While individual studies have come to conflicting
conclusions, the most recent review of all the evidence
concludes that exposure to DDT before puberty increases
the risk of breast cancer later in life. Until recently,
almost all studies measured DDT or DDE blood levels at
the time of breast cancer diagnosis or after.

18. CHILD EXPOSURE THROUGH MOTHER
1. Foetus receive certain amount of chemicals such as alcohol and
polychlorinated biphynols or PCBs,benzene from the mother via placenta
and umbilical cord.
2. Some toxic chemicals are passed to the infants through breast feeding.
Foetus can be highly sensitive to particular periods during a particular
periods during their development, and the harm may not be discovered
until adulthood.
3. Methyl mercury easily crosses the placenta, and the mercury concentration
rises to 30 percent higher in foetal red blood cells than in those of the
mother.
4. Female children of women who took the synthetics estrogen called
DES(diethylstbesterol) to prevent miscarriage, for example experienced
cancer of the virgina at increased rates when they reached adulthood.

19. CONCERN FOR NIGERIAN WOMEN
 Indiscriminate use of Cosmetics i.e. Skin bleaching/
medicated creams& soaps e.t.c
 Food Intake i.e. Processed foods, exposure through
plants grown with organic fertilizers, contaminated
soils, e.t.c.
 Indiscriminate use of pesticides (mosquito coils)and
herbicides , e.t.c.

20. Concern to women cont’d
 Cigarette smoking
 Improper waste management:
 Unhygienic management Foods/Left- over-
food
 Co-dumping of household waste
 Burning of waste

21. CONTROL OF CHEMICAL POLLUTION &
CONCERN FOR WOMEN
Governmental Actions
Public Awareness through community
based action (churches & mosques) e.g.
Training, Symposium, e.t.c
Individual Action i.e. need for
moderation on all human activities i.e.
More of organic food/spices e.g.
Iru/ogiri, less of cosmetics, more of
shear butter :what you cant put in your
mouth don’t rub on your body e.t.c.

22. CONCLUSION
 Eat right
 Exercise
 Cut off unhealthy habits
 Insist on using safety wears if working in chemical
based industries.
 Routine medical check up is essential

23. CONCLUSION cont’d
waste minimization through proper planning of quantity
of food,
 waste recycling( waste to wealth i.e. manure),
 waste segregation(Lagos state stand)
 Avail yourself to training, improve your media
awareness, be sensitive and kind to your environment ie
hygienic
 Don’t waste the waste.
 Be practical to this teaching so that you can ripe the fruit
of your labour and teach others.

24. FINAL CONCLUSION
 Remember the Bible says: with long life will I satisfy
you.Non of these diseases will come near you and
my council towards you is to prosper as your soul
prospers.
 GODBLESS YOU!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!