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The issues of environmental health and its impact on the human health are now questions of debate. As environmental health refers to the surrounding factors, there is a wide range of things in the environment that can change conditions of human well-being. Various agricultural and industrial operations, landfills or mining activities, can cause the occurrence of dangerous substances found in soil, water, and air. Human actions, which alter the global natural ecosystems, play a crucial role in deteriorating the condition of environmental health. It is important to realize that companies and technologies negatively affect global health.

Environmental health has a direct connection with risks of air and water resources depletion, food quality deterioration, hazardous substances release, unsafe public spaces, as well as poor housing conditions. Such aspects are considerably influenced by globalization, urbanization, and industrialization. Dr. Vandana Shiva defines globalization as a set of formal rules established by the World Trade Organization (WTO). However, these rules have been created in accordance with interests of the leading international companies and corporations, but not governments or members of WTO. Exposure to air pollution varies considerably between poor and rich populations. WTO reports that a quarter of all diseases is caused by changing factors in water, air, food, and soil.

Dr. Vandana Shiva argues that in Kerala, business activities of Coca-Cola and water company Suez have led to water depletion and contamination. Suez disposes the Ganges River for water supply to Delhi. For this reason, a hundred thousand people had to leave their homes. One of the most unconsoling facts is that local government has not only denied the water, but also rejected investment required for water supply. Moreover, Coca-Cola takes one and a half million liters of water per day causing drought in each tank located at two miles radius .

Furthermore, food plays a considerable role in influencing human health. The 20th century experienced a significant change in the farming industry. New technologies with chemical fertilizers and pesticides offered cheaper prices and higher crop yields, as well as increased food production and its greater availability. Such a situation led to the spread of infectious insects and explosion of diseases. In Ireland, few varieties of potatoes were infected and caused deaths of one million people. Hence, farmers find themselves trapped by the pesticides as the more they spray, the more they earn.

There exists a wide range of factors that lead to human health deterioration. They comprise chemical residues and heavy metals, which contaminate food and air (McMichael, 2008); climate change affecting the occurrence of infectious disease; impaired operation of ecosystems including wetlands; environmental disruptions, mainly floods, storms, droughts, fires or volcanoes. The other factors refer to air quality decrease causing respiratory diseases and cancer. Global changes initiated by people form conditions that favor diseases and release dangerous levels of chemicals.

In order to reduce environmental influence on human health, there should be elaborated strategies and local policies on health risk reduction. Nurses can play an active role in this process by promoting public education, particularly via healthcare settings, and introducing preventive programs, such as mosquito control, vaccination, food inspection, or nutritional supplementation. For instance, nurses can offer their patients from poor countries to develop mosquito-proof houses under the governance of the national surveillance. In addition, nurses can teach people how to make small changes in their homes, which will positively influence the environment. Such changes presuppose turning off electrical devices that are not in use, using fuel-efficient cars, walking, and planting trees.

People should admit that their activities exert a negative pressure on the environment causing freshwater shortage, climate change, and biodiversity loss. Such activities worsen human health, which largely depends on sufficient food, safe water, secure shelter, as well as clean air. A healthy environment needs healthy residents, which especially concerns international corporations that have the greatest effect on the nature. Health professionals may change this situation by promoting international and national strategies. However, each person should start from himself by leading an environmentally friendly life.

About the author

Alex Seed works at plagiarism search https://plagiarismsearch.com/ You can find more cathy articles on his profile.