 Human environment consists of very basic

elements: the air we breathe, the water we

drink, the food we eat, the climate
surrounding our bodies and the space
available for our movements.
 In addition, we exist in a social and cultural
environment, which is of great importance for
our mental and physical health.
 Most diseases are either caused or
influenced by environmental factors.
 Therefore, we need to understand the ways
in which specific environmental factors can
interfere with health to design effective
prevention programmes.
 Environmental epidemiology provides a
scientific basis for studying and interpreting
the relationships between the environment
and population health.
 Before the second half of 20th century,
environmental epidemiology focused on
disease-causing infectious agents or
pathogens and factors such as water and
food quality as well as waste control.
 Increasing life expectancy and movement
from infectious to chronic diseases has
changed the environmental epidemiology
focused from disease-causing infectious
agent to chemical and physical agents that
have large impacts on chronic illnesses.
 Environmental Health – those aspects of
human health that are determined by
physical, chemical, biological, social, and
psychological factors in the environment
(WHO,2006).
 Environmental Epidemiology – the study of
distribution and determinants of health-
related states or events in specified
populations that are influenced by physical,
chemical, biological and psychosocial factors
in the environment.
 Environmental disruptions (floods, droughts,
earthquakes, fires, tsunamis, landslides, etc.).
 Poor air quality (dust, pollen, pollution).
 Poor water quality (contaminants, inadequate
water transport and treatment).
 Changes of the environment (global warming,
nuclear accidents, hazardous material spills,
etc).
 Social disruptions (ethnic violence, chemical/
biological weapons, etc.).
 Changes in the environment may cause adverse
health effects to human.
 Human have caused environmental problems by
interfering with the hydrological cycle, nitrogen
cycle, phosphorus cycle, sulfur cycle and carbon
cycle.
 Climate change may affect human health through
temperature-related illness or death.
 Stratospheric ozone depletion may cause ULV
radiation.
 In order to identify and depict patterns of
health-related events in the population,
counts or rates of the health events should be
organized according to time, place and
person.
 Geographic Information System (GIS) is
descriptive methods that are useful for
describing disease pattern by person and
place.
 GIS is a technique that combine spatial
information with layers of attribute
information.
 Attributes may refer to demographic
characteristics, socio-economic status,
education, personal variables, etc.
 The global positioning
system (GPS) is a global
navigation system of at
least 24 satellites that
orbit the earth twice a
day.
 Accurately determine
longitude, latitude,
altitude, velocity and
time.

GIS:
Software program that enable users
to store and manipulate large
amounts of data from GPS and other
sources.
GPS:
A satellite system that
projects information to
GPS receivers on the
ground, enabling users
to determine latitude
and longitude
coordinates.
 Disease clusters.
 Air pollutant.
 Radiation and hazardous waste.
 Water and health.
 Climate change.
 Urbanization.
 Cluster refers to a grouping of health-
related events that are related temporal
and in proximity.
 The 1954 cholera outbreak which
occurred in London is a classical
example of a cluster.
 If clusters are of sufficient size and
importance, they may be re-evaluated as
outbreak.
 List S including special
waste such as medical
waste, radioactive
waste, asbestos, waste
oil and empty
containers.
 List F including waste
from non-specific
industrial sources such
as solvents, sludges
from wastewater
treatment, etc.
 List K including waste
generated from specific
industrial processes.
 List P including waste
containing acutely
hazardous materials.
 List U including waste
containing discarded
toxic off-specification
materials.
 Migration.  Chemical safety.
 Urbanization.  Transportation.
 Occupational
 Logging.
health.
 Water and  Food safety.
sanitation.  Accidents and
 Vector-borne injuries.
diseases.  Etc.
 Indoor air pollution.