MEDICAL BIOLOGY, HUMAN ANATOMY, PHYSIOLOGY AND PATHOLOGY - Y.I. Fedoniuk 2010

BIOLOGY

SECTION 2. THE BIOGEOCENOTIC LEVEL OF LIFE ORGANIZATION AND HUMAN PLACE IN IT

2.8. BIOSPHERE AND HUMANITY

Biomedical aspects of the impact of the biosphere and its individual factors on human health

Human health directly depends on environmental quality. Everyone is familiar with the restorative effect of the natural environment on a sick person or someone recovering from a serious illness.

Therefore, since ancient times, medical and health-improving facilities have been deliberately established in areas least altered by human activity. The undeniable success of this approach gradually led to The Emergence of a specialized medical field—balneology. The vast majority of people choose to escape their daily routine through nature-based recreation, as nothing is more soothing than the rustle of leaves, the scent of grass, and birdsong.

The environment contains various factors whose fluctuations significantly affect human health, thus constituting risk factors. Between 30% and 70% of people are weather-sensitive. This is particularly evident in infants under one year of age, as well as in individuals who have suffered strokes, Hypertension, or musculoskeletal injuries.

Environmental pollution with chemical and physical agents has a particularly profound impact on human health. Numerous hygienic studies have established a direct correlation between soil contamination with heavy metals and Pesticides and the incidence of population morbidity. Cases of poisoning have been documented among children and adults residing in areas where soil is polluted by industrial emissions from lead-smelting plants and vehicular exhaust. According to UNEP (United Nations Environment Programme, 1986), approximately 1 million people worldwide fall victim to pesticide poisoning annually, with over 20,000 fatalities. Atmospheric pollutants such as sulfur and nitrogen oxides, along with various Organic compounds, irritate mucous membranes and trigger a high prevalence of inflammatory eye and respiratory diseases. Many chemical pollutants exhibit carcinogenic and mutagenic properties. Populations living in polluted urban atmospheres experience a higher incidence of complicated pregnancies and deliveries, as well as an increased rate of Congenital Malformations in newborns. Foreign substances (xenobiotics), once entering The Human Body, interfere with metabolic processes, leading to adverse health consequences. While Living organisms are largely adapted to fluctuating environmental conditions, prolonged exposure to toxicants ultimately results in depletion and maladaptation.

Biological factors also pose significant health risks to the population. For instance, natural biogeocenoses are associated with natural focal diseases (such as plague, taiga encephalitis, leishmaniasis, trypanosomiasis, Schistosomiasis, and alveolar echinococcosis). These foci have persisted for centuries independently of human presence; however, human intrusion into these natural foci frequently triggers outbreaks of disease among the population.