Human Health Impact Research Articles

Assessing human toxicity and ecotoxicity impacts of agricultural pesticide use in Iran based on the USEtox model.

The human health and ecotoxicity impacts of agricultural pesticide use in Iran in 2022 were estimated. The impacts of agricultural pesticide use in Iran by pesticide, crop, and province were assessed based on the USEtox model in terms of disability-adjusted life year (DALY) for human health and potentially disappeared fraction of freshwater ecosystem species (PDF) for ecotoxicity. The annual mass of agricultural pesticide use in Iran in 2022 was 17,188 tons, consisting of herbicides (46.2 %), insecticides (30.0 %), and fungicides (23.8 %). The DALYs and DALY rate (per 100,000 people) of agricultural pesticide use in Iran were determined to be 25,140 and 29.4, respectively. The ecotoxicity impact of agricultural pesticide use in Iran was calculated to be 3.35 × 10+12 PDFm3 d. Over 79 % of the human health and ecotoxicity impacts of agricultural pesticide use were attributed to six pesticides (chlorpyrifos, deltamethrin, ethion, phosalone, thiodicarb, and abamectin) and eight crops (pistachio, apple, fig, vegetables, date, orange, wheat and barley, and cotton). While the contributions of the pesticides to the human health and ecotoxicity impact were not the same, chlorpyrifos ranked highest in both human health (28.8 %) and ecotoxicity (49.9 %) impacts. The highest provincial human health and ecotoxicity impacts of agricultural pesticide use were observed in Tehran (4,201 DALYs) and Fars (3.66 ×10+11 PDFm3 d), respectively. The provincial human health and ecotoxicity impacts were mainly driven by population and cropland area, respectively. Given the considerable human health and ecotoxicity impacts, developing national and provincial action plans for more sustainable use of pesticides in Iran is strongly recommended.

Environmental and human health impact of recycle concrete powder: an emergy-based LCA approach

Environmental and human health impact of recycle concrete powder: an emergy-based LCA approach

Sequential distribution, potential sources, and health risk assessment of persistent toxic substances in sewage sludge used as organic fertilizer in Indo-Gangetic region.

This study evaluates the environmental and human health impact of sewage sludge generated in the Indo-Gangetic region (Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh) used as organic fertilizer and landfill disposal. The research conducts a comprehensive risk assessment, including physicochemical and heavy metals analysis, on triplicate sludge samples obtained from 30 sewage treatment plants. The study provides both qualitative and quantitative insights into potential hazards associated with sewage sludge. The results indicate varying concentrations (mg/kg) of heavy metals in sewage sludge (expressed in mean ± SD) as determined by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) with the following order, zinc (966.15mg/kg ± 279) > chromium (851.23mg/kg ± 3079) > cadmium (150.07mg/kg ± 307) > copper (186.09mg/kg ± 56.25) > arsenic (5.24mg/kg ± 3.54) > nickel (21.97mg/kg ± 2.13) > mercury (1.05mg/kg ± 0.12). The metal pollution indices underscore greater non-compliance in samples from STPs of Uttar Pradesh compared to those from Uttarakhand, with 40% of samples falling into poor to particularly poor categories. Multivariate analysis of samples reveals potential pollution sources, implicating industrial effluents and agricultural runoff, with identified controlling factors being Cu (0.948, p < 0.05); Zn (0.941 p < 0.05); Pb (0.921 p < 0.05); Ni (0.806 p < 0.05); Cd (0.717, p < 0.05); and electrical conductivity (0.620, p < 0.05). Monte Carlo-based uncertainty analysis emphasizes sludge-based chromium (Cd) as the highest risk at 62.86% (p < 0.001), trailed by chromium (59.29%, p < 0.001) for target cancer risk. The study also suggests potential management options, including the application of AI-based sensors for heavy metal monitoring, exploration of improved trapping or diluting technologies, and raising public awareness about stringent rules regarding sewage sludge remediation for effective risk mitigation strategies.

Pan-European atmospheric lead pollution, enhanced blood lead levels, and cognitive decline from Roman-era mining and smelting

Ancient texts and archaeological evidence indicate substantial lead exposure during antiquity that potentially impacted human health. Although lead exposure routes were many and included the use of glazed tablewares, paints, cosmetics, and even intentional ingestion, the most significant for the nonelite, rural majority of the population may have been through background air pollution from mining and smelting of silver and lead ores that underpinned the Roman economy. Here, we determined potential health effects of this air pollution using Arctic ice core measurements of Roman-era lead pollution, atmospheric modeling, and modern epidemiology-based relationships between air concentrations, blood lead levels (BLLs), and cognitive decline. Findings suggest air lead concentrations exceeded 150 ng/m3 near metallurgical emission sources, with average enhancements of >1.0 ng/m3 over Europe during the Pax Romana apogee of the Roman Empire. The result was blood lead enhancements in young children of about 2.4 µg/dl above an estimated Neolithic background of 1.0 µg/dl, leading to widespread cognitive decline including a 2.5-to-3 point reduction in intelligence quotient throughout the Roman Empire.

An insight into recent PM1 aerosol light scattering properties and particle number concentration variabilities at the suburban site ATOLL in Northern France.

Aerosol particles in the PM1 fraction considerably influence the climate-related effects of aerosols and impact human health despite representing very variable fractions of the total aerosol mass concentration. Aerosol optical measurement techniques (aerosol light scattering) may not be sufficiently effective for detecting all particles in the PM1 fraction, particularly regarding number concentration. The present study investigates temporal variations of aerosol light scattering properties and particle number concentration (PNC) at different size modes in the PM1 fraction at the atmospheric site ATOLL (The Atmospheric Observations in Lille), Northern France from January 2018 to February 2023. The total scattering coefficient σsp decreased annually by 6% and 8% at 525 and 635nm, respectively. Maximum annual changes occur in winter and summer seasons with a decrease above 10% per year. Although the backscattering coefficient (σbsp) at 525nm significantly decreased in winter, this did not result in a significant overall decline over time. Despite a decrease in aerosol light scattering, PNC exhibited a notable annual increase in concentration of N20-30 nm and N30-60 nm, which led to an increase in the total N20-800 nm size range. N20-30nm increased by 10% annually, with the highest increase by 37% in spring. Both traffic and photooxidative processes influenced PNCs, underscoring the need for a more comprehensive investigation of the detailed particle number size distribution to assess air quality and the health effects of increased ultrafine PNC at urban/suburban sites in Europe.

Review and Analysis: Environmental and Human Health Impacts of Herbicide Use Studies Conducted during the Vietnam War and Historical Lessons

Review and Analysis: Environmental and Human Health Impacts of Herbicide Use Studies Conducted during the Vietnam War and Historical Lessons

Sustainability assessment of public transportation in Twin Cities of Pakistan: a DEMATEL analysis

This study proposed a decision-making trial and evaluation laboratory (DEMATEL) approach for the analysis of public transportation (PT) sustainability factors in Pakistan. After briefly reviewing the related literature, the PT sustainability framework was constructed, and the DEMATEL-based multiple-criteria decision analysis (MCDM) approach was developed. The proposed methodology was then applied to evaluate PT in the Twin Cities of Pakistan. The results were presented along with a sensitivity analysis involving six scenarios. The results highlighted the following: 1) Traffic congestion, infrastructure and aesthetics emerged as the most prominent factors for PT sustainability. 2) Air pollution, infrastructure, accident damage, affordability, and aesthetics were among the factors in the cause group. 3) Traffic congestion, accessibility, and human health impact were consistently in the effect group, emphasizing their secondary nature. Their resolution depended on tackling the problems in the cause group. 4) Although environmental factors such as air pollution emerged as the most significant causal factor, they were ranked lower in significance. Therefore, although resolving air pollution was key to improving PT sustainability, its importance was not perceived fully.

Review article: Biodegradation of Pharmaceutical Pollutants: Challenges, Mechanisms, and Environmental Implications

The emergence of such widespread pharmaceuticals as a pollutant has become one of the world's critical environmental problems that may lead to both the public's health and biodiversity deterioration. This article provides an exhaustive account of the current understanding of the environmental persistence of pharmaceutical contaminants following in-depth analysis of the additive effects of existing natural biodegradation pathways on the human health impact of these drugs. Paying special attention to biodegradation decomposing agents such as bacteria, fungi, and algae the paper estimates their ability to convert drug ingredients to compound that is eventually less toxic. Although these biologic systems contain an enormous potential for killing the unwanted pollutants, the variability in the complexity and endurance of the pharmaceutical substances overburden the degradation capabilities of these organisms thus necessitating improved biodegradation methods. Addressing the above-mentioned environmental factors, which include temperature, pH, and the occurrence of other contaminants, play a crucial role and have a direct impact that on the process of biodegradation, enhancing pollutants removal rate. To sum up, this paper enables the environmental science, microbiology and bioengineering enables creating progressively more functional and sustainable techniques of neutralizing these long-standing toxins; thus, protecting ecosystems, as well as human health.

Influence of Host and Landscape-Associated Factors in the Infection and Transmission of Pathogens: The Case of Directly Transmitted Virus in Mammals.

Among pathogens associated with mammals, numerous viruses with a direct transmission route impact human, domestic and wild species health. Host and landscape factors affect viral infection and transmission dynamics of these viruses, along with barriers to host dispersal and gene exchange. However, studies show biases toward certain locations, hosts and detected pathogens, with regional variations in similar host-virus associations. Using a systematic review, in two electronic repositories for articles published until December 2022, we analysed the available information on host- and landscape-associated factors influencing the infection and transmission of directly transmitted viruses in mammals. In the analysis, about 50% of papers examined either host traits, landscape composition or configuration measures, while approximately 24% combined host and landscape-associated factors. Additionally, approximately 17% of the articles included climatic data and 30% integrated factors related to anthropogenic impact, as these variables have a role in host density, distribution and virus persistence. The most significant and frequent host traits used as predictor variables were sex, age, body weight, host density and species identity. Land cover was the most evaluated landscape attribute, while some explored configuration variables like edge density and fragmentation indexes. Finally, temperature, precipitation and features such as human population density and human footprint index were also typically measured and found impactful. Given the many contributions host- and landscape-related factors have in pathogen dynamics, this systematic study contributes to a better knowledge of host-virus dynamics and the identification of variables and gaps that can be used for disease prevention.

Direct Synthesis of Semiconductive AgBiS2 NC Inks toward High‐Efficiency, Low‐Cost and Environmental‐Friendly Solar Cells

AbstractSilver bismuth sulfide nanocrystals (AgBiS2 NCs) embody a pioneering heavy‐metal‐free photovoltaic material renowned for its ultrahigh absorption coefficient, offering promising opportunities for advancing the field of ultra‐thin and biocompatible solar cells. Currently, the fabrication of AgBiS2 NC photovoltaic devices relies on hot‐injection synthesis and subsequent tedious ligand exchange, leading to high production cost, complex processes and environmental pollution. Here, we developed a direct‐synthesis (DS) method without ligand‐exchange for AgBiS2 NC semiconductive inks, significantly simplifying the material preparation and device fabrication processes. The synthesis cost of AgBiS2 inks (17.0 $ g−1) is over an order of magnitude lower than the traditional method (203.5–275.2 $ g−1). Through optimizing synthesis and device structure, a champion power conversion efficiency of 9.32 % was achieved, aligning with the highest reported efficiency (9.17 %) based on ligand‐exchanged methods. In addition, our DS‐AgBiS2 inks show excellent storage stability for over ten months. More importantly, the life cycle assessment (LCA) indicates drastically reduced energy consumption as well as environmental and human health impact for our strategy. The low‐cost and scalable synthesis approach for AgBiS2 NC semiconductive inks present a “greener” pathway for the commercial applications of NC optoelectronics.

Direct Synthesis of Semiconductive AgBiS2 NC Inks toward High-Efficiency, Low-Cost and Environmental-Friendly Solar Cells.

Silver bismuth sulfide nanocrystals (AgBiS2 NCs) embody a pioneering heavy-metal-free photovoltaic material renowned for its ultrahigh absorption coefficient, offering promising opportunities for advancing the field of ultra-thin and biocompatible solar cells. Currently, the fabrication of AgBiS2 NC photovoltaic devices relies on hot-injection synthesis and subsequent tedious ligand exchange, leading to high production cost, complex processes and environmental pollution. Here, we developed a direct-synthesis (DS) method without ligand-exchange for AgBiS2 NC semiconductive inks, significantly simplifying the material preparation and device fabrication processes. The synthesis cost of AgBiS2 inks (17.0 $ g-1) is over an order of magnitude lower than the traditional method (203.5-275.2 $ g-1). Through optimizing synthesis and device structure, a champion power conversion efficiency of 9.32 % was achieved, aligning with the highest reported efficiency (9.17 %) based on ligand-exchanged methods. In addition, our DS-AgBiS2 inks show excellent storage stability for over ten months. More importantly, the life cycle assessment (LCA) indicates drastically reduced energy consumption as well as environmental and human health impact for our strategy. The low-cost and scalable synthesis approach for AgBiS2 NC semiconductive inks present a "greener" pathway for the commercial applications of NC optoelectronics.

Investigation into the Quantitative Structure-Biotoxicity Relationship of Antibiotics and their Estrogenic Receptor Disruption Effects.

In light of antibiotics being classified as environmental hormone-like compounds, their interference with the endocrine system has significantly impacted human health and ecological environments. This study employed Density Functional Theory (DFT) within Gaussian09, conducting structural optimizations and property calculations on 23 typical antibiotic molecules at the B3LYP/3-21G and B3LYP/6-31G(d) levels to obtain structural parameters and acquired physicochemical property parameters through the RDKit database in ChemDes platform for quantitative processing of the compounds. Multiple linear regression analysis identified the primary factors affecting antibiotics' biological toxicity (pLD50), and a QSAR model was established. The model's predictive capability was analyzed using leave-one-out cross-validation, and the binding modes and mechanisms of action between estrogen receptors (ER) and antibiotics were investigated via molecular docking and molecular dynamics simulations. The results indicate that six property parameters significantly influence the biological toxicity of antibiotics, with the established QSAR model C exhibiting regression coefficients R2 and Q2 of 0.92474 and 0.74913, respectively, demonstrating good stability and predictive power. Molecular surface electrostatic potential, frontier molecular orbitals, molecular docking, and molecular dynamics simulations revealed that stable hydrogen bonds and hydrophobic interactions primarily mediate the potential estrogenic disrupting effects between antibiotics and estrogen receptors. Predictions from an anticancer compound library identified ten compounds with strong estrogenic disrupting effects, and molecular docking validated the practical utility of model C. This provides a valuable exploration for discovering and screening PPCPs with potential estrogenic disrupting effects.

Combined inertial and pleated filter for efficient PM1.0 separation and sampling

A reliable measuring method of particulate matter less than 1 µm (PM1.0) is essential to clarify the correlation between the PM1.0 mass concentration and the impact of human health, and to establish effective PM1.0 control strategies. In this study, a new PM1.0 sampler, the inertial filter/pleated filter sampler (I/P sampler), was designed to collect particles larger than 1 μm in the inertial filter and PM1.0 in the pleated filter during sampling. The inertial filter with small filtration area successfully separated particles larger than 1 μm by reducing diffusion and increasing inertia, while the pleated filter with large filtration area efficiently collected PM1.0 by lowering the filtration velocity to promote diffusional collection.The I/P sampler was used to measure PM1.0 mass concentration through field tests, with results compared with those of conventional sampling devices for PM1.0 (cyclone sampler, cascade impactor, beta attenuation monitor [BAM], and EPA-approved federal reference method [E-FRM] sampler). Field measurements indicated a good correlation between the I/P sampler and conventional samplers, with regression slopes ranging from 0.90 to 1.07 in summer and 1.10 to 1.37 in winter. In addition, the measured mass concentrations decreased in the order of I/P sampler, cyclone sampler, E-FRM sampler, BAM, and cascade impactor.

Multiresolution Analysis of HRRR Meteorological Parameters and GOES-R AOD for Hourly PM2.5 Prediction.

High-resolution, comprehensive exposure data are crucial for accurately estimating the human health impact of PM2.5. In recent years, satellite remote sensing data have been increasingly utilized in PM2.5 models to overcome the limited spatial coverage of ground monitoring stations. However, data gaps in satellite-retrieved parameters such as aerosol optical depth (AOD), the sparsity of regulatory air quality monitors for model training, and nonlinear relationships between PM2.5 and meteorological conditions can affect model performance and cause data gaps in most existing PM2.5 models. In this study, spatial gaps in AOD obtained from Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite-16 are filled using Goddard Earth Observing System Composition Forecasting AOD estimations. Furthermore, to improve model performance, meteorological predictors such as temperature from the High-Resolution Rapid Refresh model are preprocessed using Daubechies wavelet to extract low and high frequency components. The spatially gap-filled AOD, along with meteorological data, are ingested into a machine learning model to predict hourly PM2.5 at a 1 km spatial resolution in California. The model evaluation metrics (OOB (out-of-bag) R2 = 0.86 and RMSE (root-mean-square error) = 9.27 μg/m3 and 10-fold spatial cross-validation R2 = 0.82 and RMSE = 9.82 μg/m3) demonstrate the model's reliability in predicting ambient PM2.5, especially for states like California that experience frequent episodes of wildfires.

Review of IoT Systems for Air Quality Measurements Based on LTE/4G and LoRa Communications

The issue of air pollution has recently come to light due to rapid urbanization and population growth globally. Due to its impact on human health, such as causing lung and heart diseases, air quality monitoring is one of the main concerns. Improved air pollution forecasting techniques and systems are needed to minimize the human health impact. Systems that fall under the Internet of Things (IoT) topology have been developed to assess and track numerous air quality metrics. This paper presents a review of IoT systems for air quality measurements, where the emphasis is placed on systems with LTE/4G and LoRa communication capabilities. Firstly, an overview of the IoT monitoring system is provided with recent technologies in the market. A critical review is provided of IoT systems regarding air quality using LTE/4G and LoRa communications systems. Lastly, this paper presents a market analysis of commercial IoT devices in terms of the costs, availability of the device, particulate matter each device can measure, etc. A comparative study of these devices is also presented on LTE/4G and possibly LoRa communications systems.

Heat exposure promotes sarcopenia via gut microbiota-derived metabolites.

The unprecedented rise in global ambient temperatures in the last decade has significantly impacted human health, yet how heat exposure affects the development of sarcopenia remains enigmatic. Here, we demonstrate that chronic heat exposure induces skeletal muscle volume loss, leading to muscle strength and functional decline in mice. The microbiota composition of heat-exposed mice was analyzed using 16S ribosomal DNA analysis. Liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS) was used to explore the effects of heat exposure on the blood metabolome and to further analyze the correlation between blood metabolism and gut microbiota. Transplantation of microbiota from heat-exposed mice to germ-free mice was sufficient to increase adverse effects on skeletal muscle function in the host. Mechanistically, using an untargeted metabolomics strategy, we reveal that altered gut microbiota due to high temperatures is associated with elevated serum levels of homocitrulline. Homocitrulline causes mitochondrial dysfunction in myocytes by exacerbating ferroptosis levels. And Nrf2 activator (Oltipraz) supplementation alleviates muscle atrophy and dysfunction induced by heat exposure. Our findings reveal the detrimental effects of heat exposure on muscle function and provide new strategies for treating sarcopenia.

Smart and Sustainable 3D-Printed Nanocellulose-Based Sensors for Food Freshness Monitoring.

Annually, about one-third of the food produced around the world is wasted due to spoilage. Food contamination and spoilage, along with the use and disposal of nondegradable packaging materials, impact human health and have huge economic and sustainability implications. Achieving sustainability within the food system requires innovative solutions to reduce the environmental footprint. Herein, we describe the formulation, scalable manufacturing, and characterization of three-dimensional (3D)-printed sensors prepared from a mixture of edible biopolymer hydrogels, 8% alginate, and 10% gelatin and nanocellulose (CNC) as a reinforcement filler. We demonstrate that incorporating CNC improves the overall mechanical performance of the printed film and enables the stabilization of pH-responsive dyes for monitoring the release of total volatile basic nitrogen (TVB-N), an indicator of food freshness. Mechanical performance enhancement includes increases of 43% in load-depth indentation, 28.2% in hardness, and 17.4% in elastic modulus. This enhancement facilitates its use as a smart label technology, enabling the visual assessment of spoilage when placed inside packaging over a period of 3 days at room temperature. The 3D-printed film exhibits excellent durability, flexibility, shape memory, and robustness, along with pH responsiveness, showing distinctive color changes over the pH range of 2 to 13. These performances are demonstrated in packaged meat and fish, enabling monitoring over several days and illustrating potential as a real-time freshness indicator. The material formulations developed in this work are biodegradable, eco-friendly, and inexpensive, making them suitable candidates for smart and sustainable food packaging.

Alternative protein sources in the European diets – integrating health risk‐benefit and sustainability ‘ALTERNATIVA’

Abstract The pressure global food systems exert on the environment has amplified over time, following the growth of the human population, changes in the food consumption patterns and intensification of the production systems. Without changes in food systems, an overpressure on agriculture and food production will be unavoidable, with inevitable consequences for the environment and human health. Animal‐derived protein production like meat and milk is among the most important drivers of this impact. Under this context, the evaluation of the health and sustainability impacts of alternatives for animal‐based food proteins are central aspects of this discussion. Health risk‐benefit assessment (RBA) of foods estimates the overall human health impact following exposure to a particular food or food component, integrating risks and benefits in comparable measures. Methods that simultaneously consider the environmental impact of the food production systems were needed to perform a sustainable holistic assessment. “ALTERNATIVA | Alternative protein sources in the European diets – integrating health risk‐benefit and sustainability” aimed to develop a holistic approach to assess the impact of alternative protein sources, integrating health and sustainability assessment. This project, considering five complementary work packages, developed activities to enhance the capacity‐building among members of the consortium in applying methodologies related to the health RBA and sustainability impact assessment; to develop, in collaboration with different stakeholders, a protocol to integrate the assessment of the impact of foods/diets on health and on sustainability; to apply the derived framework to a case study, to validate it with a real case scenario, estimating the health and sustainability impacts of replacing red meat consumption by pulses in two different countries; and to disseminate and promote the established method of integrated health and sustainability assessment to other potential EU users. This external scientific report summarizes the main outputs and results obtained in the context of the ALTERNATIVA project.

Bandgap Control of Local Resonance Sandwich Meta-Plate with Cantilevered Archimedean Spiral Beam-Mass Resonators

In order to attenuate the various low-frequency vibrations that may cause structural fatigue and damage, impact human health and affect work efficiency, this paper presents a novel local resonance metamaterial sandwich meta-plate structure containing a cantilever spiral beam-mass resonator, and investigates vibration reduction effects of it within the obtained low-frequency bandgap range. For this purpose, a theoretical model of the low-frequency resonator being composed by a cantilever Archimedean spiral beam and cylindrical mass is established. The natural frequency of it is calculated by solving the Euler-Lagrange equation of the resonator. The accuracy and reliability of the theoretical model are verified through COMSOL simulation. The stress distribution of five types of cantilever spiral beam mass resonators (i.e. Archimedes spiral, triangle spiral, square spiral, pentagon spiral and hexagon spiral) and different cross-sectional shapes (rectangular, square, circular, diamond and triangular) are analyzed. Then, a unit cell model of a sandwich meta-plate with a cantilever Archimedean spiral beam resonator is selected. Hamilton’s principle is used to deduce the bandgap range under infinite periods, and the theoretical solutions are also verified. The parameter optimization of the substrate plate and resonator are also studied. Moreover, the effects of the various structural variables on the bandgap range are systematically explored. Finally, the dynamic responses of the sandwich meta-plate composed of [Formula: see text]-unit cells under different excitation frequencies, boundary conditions and structural damping are analyzed.

Supporting the investigation of health outcomes due to airborne emission by different approaches: current evidence for the waste incineration sector

Life cycle assessment (LCA) along with a survey on epidemiologic and oxidative potential studies was used for analysing the current evidence of the impact of airborne emissions from municipal solid waste incineration (MSWI) on human health. The correspondence among investigated health outcomes and pollutants was discussed based on the Chemical Service (CAS) and the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC). LCA indicated the ability of MSWI in avoiding human health impact, about − 2 × 10−4 DALY/tonne together with avoided emissions of particulate matter (PM) and resource depletion, about − 2.5 × 10−3 kg Sbeq/tonne and about − 0.11 kg PM2.5 eq/tonne, respectively. Positive emissions were detected for greenhouses (about 900 kg CO2eq/tonne) and ecotoxicity (about 15,000 CTUe/tonne). Epidemiologic studies performed on population exposed to MSWI reported quite contrasting results. In some of these, hazard ratio (HR) ranging from about 0.7 to 2.2 was reported concerning the incidence of stomach, liver, breast and bladder cancer. Larger agreement was detected concerning the incidence of larynx and lung cancer with HR ranging from about 1 to about 2.6. Direct causal nexuses were not definitively identified. Oxidative potential of PM was characterized by a high Pearson correlation > 0.8 to the presence of CrVI, Cu and Zn. These heavy metals were also identified by both CAS and IARC as toxic (i.e. Cu and Zn) and cancerous (i.e. CrVI) substances affecting the organs of both respiratory and digestive apparatus. In general, even if more research is necessary, LCA, oxidative potential and the epidemiologic survey results showed a high level of accordance. This suggests their integrated exploitation for supporting the investigation of both direct and indirect consequences on environment and health related to waste incineration for both retrospective and predictive studies.