“Embracing a healthy lifestyle is the key element in any individual and population prevention strategy”
Interview with dr. Daniel Duda-Seiman, University of Medicine and Pharmacy Timisoara
- The effects of soil pollution on health are less publicly acknowledged by comparison to those of water or air pollution. Can you highlight some of the issues that deserve special attention concerning the link between the quality of soil and human health?
- There is a two-way relationship between a person as an entity and, respectively, population and the environment, in this case, soil. The soil is an important source of nutrients for food, but also of substances needed for a variety of health products, such as antibiotics. The spread of the content of chemical elements or chemicals in the soil is non-homogeneous, depending on urban agglomerations, industrialization, etc. In 400 BC, Hippocrates published a list of items that should be included in a correct medical assessment, including the characteristics of the soil/soils where the patient lives, as an essential influence on health status. However, it was not until the beginning of the 20th century that the idea that soil influences health was accepted. Plants absorb many elements from the soil, which play important roles in their evolution. Thus, the following categories of metals found in the soil are differentiated:
a) Essential metals for the entire life cycle
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- Micronutrients: iron, manganese, molybdenum, copper, zinc, nickel
- With stimulating effects on plant growth: silver, gold, cobalt, aluminum
b) Metals with toxic effects, even in low concentrations: arsenic, cadmium, chromium, mercury, lead
There are three possible ways for a person to be exposed to soil materials/elements:
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- Voluntary or involuntary ingestion (swallowing)
- Breathing: by inhaling dust or dust from the soil
- Absorption or penetration of skin and mucous membranes
Lead is probably the most widespread soil contaminant, coming from various sources (leaded gasoline, lead-based paint, lead mining and founding, and other industrial activities). Depending on the type and level of exposure to lead products, a person may experience from simple muscle pain, fatigue, attention and concentration disorders, to severe forms of toxicity of various clinical forms (high-intensity abdominal pain – saturnine colic; neurological impairment and coma). Lead was also classified as a possible carcinogen.
Mercury it is often a byproduct of industrial processes, such as coal burning; vaporized mercury enters soil and water, being an important source of intake, for humans and for animals and plants alike. The clinical presentation of mercury poisoning is diverse and gradual, depending on the level of exposure, on the duration of exposure, on age. Nausea, vomiting, metallic taste, anxiety, neuro-sensory and motor disorders, muscle weakness may occur. In adults can cause fertility disorders. It is important to point out that chronic exposure to mercury affects the growth of children, as well as the maturation of the nervous system. The impact on the fetus is overwhelming, from malformations to stopping the course of pregnancy.
– Public health has become a priority concern as the new global crisis is linked to health issues. How can we translate the interest in immediate disease prevention solutions to sustainable solutions for public health?
– In any society and in any health system, prevention is the golden rule to ensure an optimal model of public health, whether we are talking about cardiovascular, metabolic, neoplastic, infectious diseases, etc. Immediate solutions are extremely important for solving an acute situation (e.g. isolation, quarantine). The expected result is an increase in the number of avoidable cases (of those who avoid diseases). However, in order to stay healthy in the long run we need to learn, to understand what the pieces are in the puzzle and place them in their natural order. Awareness of the risk for a disease is the basis of learning: what is the disease in question, what are the risk factors, the triggers, the causal factors, how does it spread in the population if it is a contagious disease. This leads to the logical prevention strategies, presented to the population in a clear, coherent and sustained manner. Let’s not forget that we, the adults, must educate in our children, through play, through stories, those behaviors that ensure their safety, the preservation of an optimal state of health. In the long run, such measures lay at the basis for the development of a generation of responsible adults.
– From your research on preventing pollution-related illness, what would be some ‘lessons learned’ that can be passed on to local communities in mining or former mining areas?
– Adopting a healthy lifestyle (diet, movement, giving up smoking, observing rest hours) is the key element in any individual and population prevention strategy. In addition, economic agents in the mining industry must implement all standards of labour protection and environmental protection. The long-term solution is, in my opinion, for agencies dealing with environmental issues to initiate joint programs with research institutes and universities for the development and implementation of pollution control techniques and technologies, as well as for environmental regeneration and soil decontamination.
Interviewer: Mariana Cernicova-Bucă
