EESA10H3 Lecture Notes - Biomedical Waste, Dyslexia, Chloracne
Document Summary
Chemical hazards can also be found in soil, food, vegetation, air, basically everywhere. Contaminants any substance that may harm human health (but not necessarily) Pollutants any substance that is more likely to harm human health toxic. People think that if something is synthetic, then it is dangerous not necessarily true some natural contaminants/pollutants are very dangerous to human health. Endocrine disruptors: chemicals that interfere with normal hormonal functions in our body create adverse side effects eg. cancers, birth defects, etc. Chemical body burdens: chemical pollutants are often called body burdens mimic body hormones (same as endocrine disruptors) they can accumulate in the body = body burdens can also be from industrial wastes. Problem: we don"t know enough about these chemicals and how they affect human health, most studies and conclusions are based on animal studies that have similar physiologies as humans (eg. rats, pigs) Note: hormones are produced in low amounts.