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HUMAN HEALTH
Environmental Health
UV Radiation/ Ozone
Lung Damage
Asthma
What is Lead?
Main
Sources of Lead Contamination
How
might I be exposed to Lead?
Health
Effects
Children's
Health Effects
How
to reduce exposure risk
More
Information
What
are PCBs?
PCB
environmental effects
Health
Effects
Children's
Health Effects and Fish Consumption Advisory
How
to reduce exposure risk
UV radiation from the sun and ozone can seriously threaten human health causing shortness of breath, coughing, wheezing, and eye and nose irritation. It is especially dangerous to older adults, children, asthmatics and persons with other chronic respiratory ailments. Among the most common health risks from overexposure to the sun’s UV radiation are sunburn, premature wrinkling and skin cancer.
The most obvious result of too much sun is sunburn, which involves skin redness and sometimes tenderness, swelling, blistering, fever, and nausea. Although some skin types prevent individuals from burning, everyone is at risk for other UV-related health effects.
Premature wrinkling is another result of overexposure. In the long run, too much exposure to the sun can change your skin’s texture, giving it a tough, leathery appearance. The sun also can cause discolorations in skin tone including red, yellow, gray, or brown spots.
Also, over time, exposure
to the sun and severe sunburns can eventually lead to skin cancer.
The most common places for skin cancer to develop are on those body parts
exposed to the sun such as the face, next, ears, forearms, and hands. According
to Russell Train, author of Environmental Concerns for the Year 2000:
“There are three main types of skin cancer are basal cell carcinoma, squamous cell carcinoma, and malignant melanomas may appear without warning as a dark mole or other dark spot in the skin All three types can be curable if you detect them in their early stages”.
To help recognize potential problems, conduct periodic self-examinations and watch for growths that meet one of the ABCDs’ of melanoma:
Due to sun sensitivity some people develop bumps, hives, blisters, or red blotchy areas as an allergic reaction to sun exposure. Certain drugs, perfumes, and cosmetic can make some people sensitive the sun. Sun exposure may also lead to immune system suppression and disease. No matter what your skin type or susceptibility to burns, sun exposure can damage your immune system and make your body more vulnerable to infections and cancers. Diseases, such as herpes simplex (cold sores), chicken pox, and lupus, can become worse with sun exposure. Eye damage is another adverse effect of overexposure to the sun’s UV radiation. The American Academy of Ophthalmology has cautioned that excess exposure to UV radiation can cause a painful burn of the cornea. Chronic eye exposure to UV radiation may increase the incidence of cataract, which is a clouding of the eye lens; pterygium, in which fleshy membrane covers the eye; and possibly macular degeneration, or the development of spots that could result in blindness.
There are several sun safety tips that individuals should followed in order to prevent overexposure to sun:
The level of ozone
found in the air in cities along the southeastern and western shore of
Lake Michigan (Milwaukee, Chicago, and Gary) during warm weather months
(May through September) frequently exceeds standards considered safe to
human health. Ozone reacts with lung tissue and can inflame and cause
harmful changes in breathing passages, decreasing the lung’s working ability.
Symptoms can include shortness of breath, pain when inhaling deeply, wheezing
and coughing. All of us are susceptible to the adverse health effects
of ozone. Consequently, ozone is a regulated pollutant for which
U.S. EPA has established air quality standards at levels considered safe
for most people. People with existing lung disease (e.g. asthma,
chronic bronchitis, and emphysema) already suffer from reduced lung function.
Aggravated respiratory symptoms from exposure to ozone may further impair
the ability of these individuals to perform normal activities and can result
in increased summertime hospital admissions, emergency department visits,
and even death. We can protect ourselves when ozone levels are high
by avoiding physical exertion between 11:00 a.m. and 8:00 p.m., and whenever
possible, by limiting all outdoor activities. Also, watch for pollution
reports in the media in order to determine those days when caution should
be taken.
Asthma 
Those individuals who suffer
from asthma should be on special alert because ground-level ozone (smog)
can irritate your lungs and throat, causing symptoms such as coughing,
wheezing, shortness of breath and chest pain to even the healthiest people.
However, these effects are very dangerous for people with asthma, children
and the elderly. Ozone can aggravate asthma, causing more asthma
attacks, increased use of medication, more medical treatment and more visits
to hospital emergency room. Asthma is one of the leading causes of
childhood hospital admissions. Children are more susceptible to the
effects of smog because: pound for pound, children breathe more air
(and ozone) than adults, spend more time outdoors than adult and children’s
respiratory systems are still developing. Ozone presents an
increased risk to the elderly because it can aggravate preexisting respiratory
disease. The elderly experience reduced sensitivity to symptoms of
ozone; therefore, each warning signs of he harmful effects of ozone may
be ignored.
Individuals with asthma,
and other respiratory disease should be aware that on high ozone days they
are more susceptible to asthma attacks. Individuals should also watch
for Ozone Action Days. Ozone Action Days are called when weather
forecasters predict weather conditions that are likely to cause high ozone.
People who are at risk should limit their time outdoors, on high ozone
days in order to reduce the risk of exposure to ozone. Stay in well
ventilated or air condition building. If serious problems result individuals
should immediately contact their physicians.
What is Lead? 
Lead is a naturally occurring
bluish-gray metal found in small amounts in the earth’s crust. Lead can
be found in all parts of our environment. Much of it comes from human activities
including the burning of fossil fuels, mining, and manufacturing. Lead
has many different uses. It is used in the production of batteries, ammunition,
metal products (solder and pipes), and devices to shield X-rays. Because
of health concerns, lead from gasoline, paints and ceramic products, caulking,
and pipe solder has been dramatically reduced in recent years.
Main Sources of Lead Contamination
Lead based paint is a hazard if it is peeling, chipping, chalking or cracking. Lead-based paint that appears undisturbed can be a problem if it is on surfaces that children chew or that get much damage. The older your home is the more likely it is to contain lead- based paint.
Contaminated dust forms when lead paint is dry-scraped or sanded. Dust can also become contaminated when painted surfaces bump or rub together. Lead chips and dust can gather on surfaces and objects that people touch or that children put into their mouths.
Contaminated soil occurs when exterior lead-based paint from houses, buildings, or other structures flakes or peels and gets into the soil.
Contaminated drinking water from older plumbing fixtures found
in older buildings or the water’s source.
How might I be exposed to lead?
Children’s Health Effects
Lead poisoning is a top
environmental health hazard for young children, affecting as many as 1.7
million children age five and under, according to Centers for Disease Control
and Prevention (CDC) data. The percentage of Indiana children with
higher than normal lead levels is greater than the Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention’s national average of 4.4 percent. From 1995 to
1998, 99,000 Indiana children were screened for lead. Ten percent of these
children were determined to have elevated levels of lead in their blood.
Eating lead-based paint chips, chewing on objects painted with lead-based paint, or swallowing house dust or soil that contains lead can expose small children. Children are more vulnerable to lead poisoning than adults. A child who swallows large amounts of lead may develop blood anemia, severe stomachache, muscle weakness, and brain damage. A large amount of lead might get into a child's body if the child ate small pieces of old paint that contained large amounts of lead. If a child swallows smaller amounts of lead, much less severe effects on blood and brain function may occur. Even at much lower levels of exposure, lead can affect a child's mental and physical growth.
Exposure to lead is more dangerous for young and unborn children. Unborn children can be exposed to lead through their mothers. Harmful effects include premature births, smaller babies, and decreased mental ability in the infant, learning difficulties, and reduced growth in young children. These effects are more common if the mother or baby was exposed to high levels of lead.
Reduce the risk of exposure to lead by:
What
are polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs)? 
Polychlorinated biphenyls
are mixtures of up to 209 individual chlorinated compounds (known as congeners).
There are no known natural sources of PCBs. PCBs are either oily liquids
or solids that are colorless to light yellow. Some PCBs can exist as a
vapor in air. PCBs have no known smell or taste.
PCBs have been used as coolants and lubricants in transformers, capacitors, and other electrical equipment because they don't burn easily and are good insulators. The manufacture of PCBs was stopped in the U.S. in 1977 because of evidence they build up in the environment and can cause harmful health effects. Products made before 1977 that may contain PCBs include old fluorescent lighting fixtures and electrical devices containing PCB capacitors, and old microscope and hydraulic oils.
Children’s
Health Effects and Fish Consumption Advisory
Each year, the Indiana
Fish Consumption Advisory, a guide for fish consumption, is issued
by the Indiana State Department of
Health through cooperative efforts with IDEM
and the Indiana Department of Natural
Resources. Women who were exposed to relatively high levels of
PCBs in the workplace or ate large amounts of fish contaminated with PCBs
had babies that weighed slightly less than babies from women who did not
have these exposures. Babies born to women who ate PCB-contaminated fish
also showed abnormal responses in tests of infant behavior. Some of these
behaviors, such as problems with motor skills and a decrease in short-term
memory, lasted for several years. Other studies suggest that the immune
system was affected in children born to and nursed by mothers exposed to
increased levels of PCBs. There are no reports of structural birth defects
caused by exposure to PCBs or of health effects of PCBs in older children.
The most likely way infants will be exposed to PCBs is from breast milk.
Transplacental transfers of PCBs were also reported. In most cases,
the benefits of breast-feeding outweigh any risks from exposure to PCBs
in mother’s milk.
Reduce your risk of PCB exposure by:
3400 Broadway - Gary, Indiana 46408
888-YOUR IUN
219-980-6500
http://www.iun.edu/~environw/index.htm
Comments: Ellen
Szarleta
Affirmative
Action/Equal Opportunity
