Environmental Pollution and Chronic Disease Management – A Prognostics Approach

Abstract

In many metropolitan cities, environmental pollution has a substantial impact on social and cultural well being. Statistically provable direct heath effects may require further studies to establish the influence on the community and the public healthcare system. The combined effects of fossil fuel burning and economic growth have negative impacts on health and financial costs in many areas. The main research objective aims at exploring the links between environmental pollution and health related problems. The inherently slow and reactive response over generations has repeatedly made corrective actions after an incident but not before and sometimes becomes too late. Also, health and safety precautions are often not properly exercised in a pre-emptive manner. Any proactive measure through proper early warning and environmental control methodologies would certainly yield a reduction in preventable illnesses as well as health degradation that result from improper care and environmental pollution. Pollution is not only a problem in the community as a whole. Even at home, indoor air pollution causes a wide range of health-related issues (Bruce, 2000). The impacts of pollution on human health must therefore be assessed both for indoor and the broader outdoor environment. Since the industrial revolution of the 19th century, health hazards related to discharge of toxic chemicals and heavy metals from manufacturing plants has also become a more serious health issue. Air pollutants can travel hundreds of miles causing respiratory problems and chronic diseases. Heavy metal and toxic chemical deposits enter the food chain through the food chain and water supply (Nasreddinea, 2002). As health of the general population degrades, more people require medical attention that will eventually stretch healthcare resources to their limits. Work on reducing health problems directly or indirectly caused by environmental pollution is urgently needed because demand on public health services is expected to grow substantially over the next two decades as a direct consequence of population aging in most developed countries (Christensen, 2009). In many cases, chronic disease is avoidable if appropriate actions are taken especially among senior citizens given access to the appropriate assistive technologies. The environment has a substantial impact on both chronic and infectious disease (HallStoodley, 2004). Take, for example, water contamination that was caused by massive