WHO’s definition of health is “a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity“. A clean environment is clearly one of the prerequisites for good health.
According to a WHO report issued in 2006, in the WHO European Region as much as 14-19% of disease is caused by environmental exposures which can be averted. The report further estimates that more than 24% of deaths and 22% of disease in children under the age of 14 is caused by environmental exposures. Well-targeted interventions can prevent much of this environmental risk and save thousands of lives a year.
The following are among the major diseases and conditions associated with environmental determinants:
- Preventing disease through healthy environments: Towards an estimate of the environmental burden of disease (2006) (http://www.who.int/quantifying_ehimpacts/publications/preventingdisease/en/index.html)
- Burden of disease attributable to selected environmental factors and injuries among Europe's children and adolescents (2004) (http://www.euro.who.int/childhealthenv/Monitoring/20040519_1)
- Children’s health and environment: a review of evidence (2002) (http://www.euro.who.int/childhealthenv/Monitoring/20020725_4)
|
|
