Humans interact with the environment constantly. These interactions affect quality of life, years of healthy life lived, and health disparities. The World Health Organization (WHO) defines environment, as it relates to health, as “all the physical, chemical, and biological factors external to a person, and all the related behaviors.

Environmental health is a broad category that addresses all the physical, chemical and biological factors that are external to a person. Topics range from air quality and pollution to healthy homes and occupational hazards. Exposure to unsafe drinking water, inadequate sanitation and poor hygiene are leading causes of cholera and a variety of infectious and tropical diseases in Nigeria and Africa at large.

WHY ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH IS IMPORTANT

Better environmental management could prevent up to 40% of deaths from malaria, 41% of deaths from lower respiratory infections and 94% of deaths from diarrhoeal disease which are three of the biggest childhood killers in Africa.
environmental-health
Urban living is becoming more predominant and city dwellers face many new health challenges. Urbanization is associated with the scarcity of clean water (where i live, i can’t cook with my water, sometimes i can not even bath with it yet is the center of the city), deforestation and traffic accidents, and an increased exposure to risk factors such as tobacco use, unhealthy diets, physical inactivity and harmful use of alcohol.

Healthier environments can reduce the incidence of noncommunicable diseases such as cancer, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, asthma, and overweight and obesity – the fastest growing conditions in Africa. Up to 80% of heart disease, stroke and type 2 diabetes could be prevented and 40% of cancer.

Poor environmental quality has its greatest impact on people whose health status is already at risk. Therefore, environmental health must address the societal and environmental factors that increase the likelihood of exposure and disease.... Read full article here...
http://www.biminiflashng.com/health-tips-talk-why-you-must-take-your-environmental-health-seriously/