Pollution of All Types: A Broad Review of the Health Implications (Department of Health / BBC News)

Summary

The Chief Medical Officer’s latest annual report summarises the latest emerging evidence about all types of pollution. The press release talks of four main topics:

1. Pollution arising from healthcare.
2. Pollution and health inequalities.
3. Emerging pollution-related issues.
4. Pollution measurement and communication of the likely risks.

The main sections in the main report cover:

• Pollution from the Health and Care System.
• 21st century chemicals.
• New horizons.
• Health economics of interventions to reduce pollution.
• Pollution and inequality.
• Environmental health – response to pollution.
• Pollution – data, surveillance and health impacts.
• Measurement and communication of health risks from pollution.

Note: One perhaps noteworthy omission from this report is any detailed examination of environmental prion contamination, there being little explicit mention of the human and animal prion diseases (vCJD and BSE / scrapie etc.).

Full Text Link

Reference

Triggle, N. (2018). Public at risk from ‘daily cocktail of pollution’. London: BBC Health News, March 2^nd 2018.

This relates to:

Full Text Link

Reference

Annual report of the Chief Medical Officer 2017: Health impacts of all pollution – what do we know? London: Department of Health and Social Care, March 2^nd 2018.

Plastics Pollution

Possibly of interest:

Full Text Link

Reference

Seven charts that explain the plastic pollution problem. London: BBC Science & Environment News / BBC Health News, December 10^th 2017.

Microplastics in Bottled Water

Bottled water may contain an average of ten plastic particles (microplastics) per litre:

Full Text Link

Reference

Shukman, D. (2018). Plastic particles found in bottled water. London: BBC Science & Environment News / BBC Health News, March 15^th 2019.

NHS to Reduce Reliance on Catering Plastic

“The NHS bought at least 163 million plastic cups, 16 million pieces of plastic cutlery, 15 million straws and 2 million plastic stirrers last year. If the NHS cut its use of catering plastic in half it could mean over 100 million fewer items each year end up polluting the oceans or in landfill”.

Full Text Link

Reference

NHS bids to cut up to 100 million plastic straws, cups and cutlery from hospitals. [Online]: NHS England, October 12^th 2019.