Global Environmental Health Newsletter, 2021 International Climate Change Reports Assess the Earth’s Climate, incorporated in a letter written by David Richards, October, 2021 (link)

Climate Change is affecting human health. It’s a result of the Greenhouse effect, which is caused by fossil fuel production and human activities. As it continues, humans have experienced more heat-related illnesses, Malaria, Lyme Disease, Dengue Fever, Cardiovascular Disease, and more. As more methane, carbon dioxide, and other gasses continue to build up in the atmosphere, these issues will only continue to prevail.

It’s crazy how bad the situation of our current climate is, and it’s scary to think about what it will be like in the future. There are so many illnesses and diseases that are caused by this omnipresent issue, which is why we need to act sooner rather than later. I thought this article was interesting to look at, considering we’re studying this topic in class. It made me think about the Biosequestration letters, and what we could be doing collectively to slow down our warming climate. This site mentioned multiple diseases, which are all caused by various environmental factors.

The Guardian, ‘Toilet of Europe’: Spain’s pig farms blamed for mass fish die-offs, written by The Guardian Editors, October 31, 2021 (link)

Dead fish washed up on the Mar Menor lagoon in Spain. Nitrate-laden runoff was causing excess algae blooms in the water. Pork farming had been reported as the primary cause of this runoff. Due to this disaster, the government banned fertilizer use within 1.5k of the lagoon. It was determined that nearly 800,000 animals are the cause of 17% of the nitrogen found. Many of the pig farms were found not following the regulations set regarding their waste management.

This event was fascinating to learn about, considering I haven’t heard of it before. I thought it was interesting that the fish were dying from Eutrophication, which is something we had learned about earlier this year. Hopefully, people begin understanding the severity of this issue, and set regulations to respect the wildlife in areas like the Mar Menor lagoon. I think this article is important, and demonstrates that we need to shift our FALU practices to something more sustainable. While this isn’t a disease, it’s a severe condition that’s killing wildlife.

School of Public Health (University of Michigan), Why Africa Still Has Ebola Outbreaks, written by Kennedy DuBose, Julia Duffy, Sania Farooq, Sucaad Mohamud, and Maggie Sanders, February 4, 2021 (link)

Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) is spread to the body through bodily fluids, animals, and contaminated objects. It’s able to spread from one person to another through the eyes, nose, mouth, and skin. The transmission process can’t start until the EVD positive person starts experiencing symptoms. Some of these symptoms include diarrhea, fatigue, muscle pain, headache, rash, and internal bleeding. One of the primary reasons why EVD is fatal in underdeveloped regions is because they suffer from a lack of resources. 

Learning about Ebola Virus Disease was very interesting. I already knew about it before reading this article, but I learned more about its ability to spread, and the importance of having resources to take care of it. These resources include IVs, antibiotics, blood pressure meds, and more. I think it’s super scary that most people who catch this disease end up dying in horrible ways. EVD basically liquifies people’s innards, which is terrifying to think about. This disease is related to the environment, considering it affects humans and animals.

Cision PR Newswire, China’s Alectinib Market Repoort 2021: Market Reached Approximately $47.18 Million in 2020, with a CAGR of 815%, 2018-2020 – Forecast to 2025, written by Research and Markets, December 31, 2021 (link)

This article is related to lung cancer cases found in China. It’s predicted that lung cancer cases will continue to increase from 2021 to 2025 due to environmental pollution. Lung cancer is the most common- it was reported that there were approximately 4.57 million cancer cases reported in 2020, 820,000 of them being lung cancer. The majority of these patients (85%) suffer from non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC).

I thought this article was very scary to read about. I had no idea that lung cancer was so common, despite the extreme pollution produced by China’s mass-industrial society. It goes to show how detrimental pollution is to human health. Hopefully, we can find medications to treat this and create stricter regulations to prevent other regions from becoming this polluted. This would be categorized as an environmental-related disease, since it mentions environmental pollution and how it’s impacting human health.

Medical Press, Global eradication of Guinea worm disease urged as cases halved in 2021 to record low, written by Sanjeet Bagcchi, February 2, 2022 (link)

Guinea worm disease is a parasitic disease, which is caused by consuming water that is contaminated with Copepod fleas, typically in underdeveloped countries. Guinea worm disease may not be fatal, but it causes people to become non-functional for weeks to months at a time. While it can’t be treated, filtering the water can, and has been proven to, greatly reduce the number of cases. It affects animals, as well as humans, but these cases are also dropping as domestic dogs are being watched more closely.

I knew about parasites and how they could be caught from contaminated water, but I never knew about the prevalence of this condition in particular. I thought it was interesting, but also pretty gross. While reading this, I was sad that children had to endure this condition and its side effects, but I was happy to learn that these cases were dropping in both humans and animals. This is mostly due to the community’s ability to filter water, which is pretty fascinating. Ultimately, this topic is an environmental-related disease, which is why it fits into this category.

Berkeley News, First-of-its-kind study links wildfire smoke to skin disease, written by Kara Manke, April 21, 2021 (link)

Wildfire smoke can affect the human body in a multitude of ways. While some people have developed a runny nose or cough, others have had heart attacks, strokes, and more. New studies are showing that smoke can now affect skin health in negative ways. There have been cases where polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, and other gases, have gone through the skin and penetrated cells. People with eczema are even more at risk.    

I didn’t know there were so many ways that smoke from wildfires could affect people. It’s terrifying that even smoke from a campfire could trigger some of the reactions that were mentioned. The article also brought up an increase in prescribed medications, which I found really interesting. This means that the economy is being affected as well. Plus, as global temperatures increase, the number of wildfires increases. Not only does this cause pollution, but it also feeds into the greenhouse effect.

The San Diego Union Tribune, Column: Ticking bomb: Lyme disease is not an East Coast phenomenon, written by Diane Bell, March 6, 2020 (link)

Cases of Lyme disease have been reported in around 42 counties in the state of California. Symptoms include headaches, chronic fatigue, joint pain, and more. Western black-legged ticks can infect humans with Borellia burgdorferi, the bacteria that results from Lyme disease. Scientists have been studying the blood and urine of those infected to get more information. There are 50 current studies in progress. While voles, moles, rats, and mice are known to carry ticks, gray squirrels are the primary culprits.

 I had no idea Lyme disease could lead to memory loss. The increase in Western black-legged ticks is pretty scary. Lyme disease is an environmental-related disease that can be transmitted to humans. Besides that being the primary topic of this article, other topics were introduced, such as an increase in studies and search for better technology in relation to this dilemma. It’s hard to say if this issue will affect the economy, considering that fewer people might want to go to national parks, which is one of California’s income sources.  

News > Environment, Rapidly spreading virus killing rabbits in Southern California, written by Martin Wisckol, July 16, 2020 (link)

Rabbit Hemorrhagic Disease Virus Type 2 has been infecting the rabbits in southern California. Reports of this disease have been spotted in various counties: Orange, Riverside, San Diego, and San Bernardino. 90% of rabbits are killed when exposed to this illness. Some symptoms include a lack of appetite, fever, and difficulty breathing. Despite there being a vaccine, this disease is still hard to track in the wild.      

It’s crazy that this disease is so lethal to rabbits, and that this is happening in areas pretty close to where I live. I was surprised to find out that rabbits could drop dead without showing symptoms. This article has to do with environmental science in several ways. For one, RHDV2 is an environmental-related disease. Also, the effects of this sickness could result in the changing of ecosystems. Certain animals, such as bobcats and coyotes, depend on rabbits as a food source. The dwindling in numbers could be highly detrimental to those predators. 

The New York Times, State Bacteria Are Attacking California’s Trout Supply, Written by Will McCarthy, September 29, 2020 (link)

In late April, trout began to show odd symptoms in local hatcheries. These symptoms involved bulging of the eyes, swelling of the abdomen, and more. After running tests, studies showed that it was Lactococcus garvieae. The bacterial infection was first seen in a Spanish hatchery in 1988, before making its way through various countries to the United States. While some fish show symptoms, others are asymptomatic, making this disease even harder to track. 

There is a lot of care that goes into looking over fish, let alone any organism, from creating a stable environment for them to thrive, to properly caring for them. Not only does this article mention the topic of hatcheries, but it also brings up the economy of certain areas, which are both prevalent topics when discussing environmental science. All of these factors are being compromised by the Lactococcus garvieae infection, which fits in the category of environmental related diseases. I was shocked to learn about the amount of fish being subjected to this illness, as well as the decisions that were made regarding this issue.