Background: Children must be recognized as a sensitive population based on having biological systems and organs in various stages of development. The processes of absorption, distribution, metabolism and elimination of environmental contaminants within a child's body are considered less advanced than those of adults, making them more susceptible to disease outcomes following even small doses. C...

Environmental epidemiology comprises the epidemiologic study of those environmental factors that are outside the immediate control of the individual. Exposures of interest to environmental epidemiologists include air pollution, water pollution, occupational exposure to physical and chemical agents, as well as psychosocial elements of environmental concern. The main methodologic problem in envir...

J n keeping with the NIEHS philosoph aiti bette to disease than to treat it and that controlling evro exposures is one of the best disease-preventi sti NIEHS Strategic Plan 2000, released in Ma'_rch framework of goals in nine areas that represent tShetinsti p furthering the field of the environmental health scnes overte five years. These goals reflect the institute's mission todei e h w_ enviro...

Prevention strategies that delay the onset of asthma may improve clinical outcomes. To identify early life environmental exposures associated with asthma age-of-onset and potential genetic modifiers of these exposures, we studied 1085 subjects with physician-diagnosed asthma and disease onset at or after age two. Subjects reported retrospectively on their exposure to 17 environmental factors be...

In this application, we propose to examine the cross-talk between environmental exposures and infectious diseases, which represents a current void in toxicological and environmental health research. The motivation and significance stem from the fact that humans are constantly exposed to not only a vast number of environmental chemicals, but also many disease-causing infectious agents or other i...

Exposures to environmental pollution remain a major source of health risk throughout the world, though risks are generally higher in developing countries, where poverty, lack of investment in modern technology and weak environmental legislation combine to cause high pollution levels. Associations between environmental pollution and health outcome are, however, complex and often poorly character...

Epidemiology is struggling increasingly with problems with correlated exposures and small relative risks. As a consequence, some scholars have strongly emphasized molecular epidemiology, whereas others have argued for the importance of the population context and the reintegration of epidemiology into public health. Environmental epidemiology has several unique features that make these debates e...

The 2007 Summit on Environmental Challenges to Reproductive Health and Fertility convened scientists, health care professionals, community groups, political representatives, and the media to hear presentations on the impact of environmental contaminants on reproductive health and fertility, and to discuss opportunities to improve health through research, education, communication, and policy. En...

There are few unequivocably established environmental carcinogens for breast cancer in women. Nevertheless, environmental factors are believed to explain much of the international variation in breast cancer risk and possibly differences among racial/ethnic groups. Along with lifestyle, some adverse exposures may be higher in minority racial/ethnic groups and in underserved populations that expe...

In spite of decades of epidemiological research, the etiology and causal patterns for many common diseases, such as breast and colon cancer or neurodegenerative diseases, are still largely unknown. Such chronic diseases are likely to have an environmental origin. However, "environmental" risks have been often elusive in epidemiological studies. This is a conundrum for current epidemiological re...