Environmental Alteration Leads to Human Disease: A Planetary Health Approach (Sustainable Development Goals Series)

This book aims to explore the impact of human alterations of Earth’s ecological systems on human health. Human activities are producing fundamental biophysical changes faster than ever before in the history of our species, which are accompanied by dangerous health effects. Drawing on advanced ecological principles, the book demonstrates the importance of using systemic medicine to study the effects of ecological alterations on human health. Planetary Health is an interdisciplinary field, but first of all it must be systemic and it needs a preferential relationship between Ecology and Medicine. This relation is to be upgrading, because today both ecology and medicine pursue few systemic characters and few correct interrelations. We need to refer to new principles and methods sustained by the most advanced fields, as Landscape Bionomics and Systemic Medicine. Thus, we will be able to better discover environmental syndromes and their consequences on human health. Environmental transformations proposed by PHA (from biodiversity shifts to climate change) do not consider bionomic dysfunctions which can menace human health. On the contrary, finding advanced diagnostic criteria in landscape syndromes can strongly help to find the effects on human well-being. The passage from sick care to health care can’t avoid the mentioned upgrading. Foreword Preface Contents 1: Understanding Complexity in Life Sciences 1.1 Introduction 1.2 Where we Are Now: The Systemic Paradigms 1.3 How we Got Here: Struggling with Organized Complexities 1.4 The Way out: The Mesoscopic Way of Thinking 1.5 Hidden Simplicity in Biological Complexity 1.5.1 A Case Study: Predicting Time-to-Event Development of Frank Alzheimer 1.6 Conclusions: A Relational Epistemology References 2: A New Paradigm in Medicine: Psychoneuroendocrineimmunology and Science of Integrated Care 2.1 Lessons from Pandemic Covid-19 2.2 Support the Resilience of the Population 2.2.1 Environment 2.2.2 Nutrition 2.2.3 Physical Activity 2.2.4 Stress 2.2.5 Conclusions on COVID-19 Pandemic 2.3 Effectiveness of Standard Care 2.4 A Sea of Money for Biomedical Research 2.5 The Paradigm: A Vision Based on Concepts, Practises, Interests and Apparatuses 2.5.1 A Paradigm to Learn and Know 2.5.2 The Paradigmatic Role of Industry 2.6 Integrated Care 2.7 The Promotion of Health in the Neoliberal Era 2.7.1 Physis and nómoi Today 2.7.2 Neoliberal Self-Care as a Deception and as Bad Conscience of the State 2.7.3 Automation, Unemployment, Isolation, Virtual World 2.7.4 Artificial Intelligence at the Service of Psychopolitics 2.8 A Phase of Extreme Danger and Opportunity 2.9 Care Sciences in the Face of the Epochal Changes under Way References Suggested Reading 3: From General Ecology to Bionomics 3.1 Paradigm Shift and a New Concept of Life 3.1.1 Premise: Effects of Life Alterations on Human Health from Small to Broad Scale 3.1.2 Paradigm Shift from Reductionism to Systemic Complexity 3.1.3 The Emergence of a New Concept of Life 3.1.4 The Control of Bio-Hierarchical Systems on Men and Culture 3.2 Environmental Alteration Needs a New Ecology 3.2.1 Environmental Alterations and the Damage of Human Health: The PHA 3.2.2 Limits of Traditional Ecology and the Birth of Bionomics 3.2.3 Upgrading Landscape Ecology: Landscape Bionomics 3.3 Landscape Bionomics: Some Key Concepts 3.3.1 Main Structures and State Functions in Landscape Bionomics 3.3.2 Main Syndromes Concerning Landscapes 3.3.3 Diagnostic Evaluation in Landscape Bionomics 3.3.3.1 The Bionomic Functionality (BF) 3.3.4 Role of Vegetation Science and Agroecology 3.3.5 Territorial Governance and Planning 3.3.6 Role of Urban and Suburban Parks 3.4 Bionomics and Scales, from Genome to Region 3.4.1 Epigenetics Confirmation of Bionomics Principles 3.4.2 Bionomics and Scale Interferences 3.5 Environmental Alteration and Human Health 3.5.1 Landscape Pathology Damages Human Health 3.5.2 New Relationships between Bionomics, Ecology, and Medicine 3.6 Conclusion References 4: Planetary Health: Human Impacts on the Environment 4.1 Human Impact on the Environment: Main Drivers 4.1.1 The Planetary Health Alliance Concept Note 4.1.2 Upgrading Traditional Ecology 4.1.2.1 Life 4.1.2.2 Environment 4.1.2.3 Ecosystem 4.1.2.4 Land Structure 4.1.2.5 Land Transformation 4.1.2.6 Biodiversity 4.1.2.7 Health State 4.1.3 Trying to Upgrade the Man/Environment Drivers 4.2 Underlying Drivers: The Distortions due to Economy 4.2.1 Neoclassical Economy Is Indebted with Nature 4.2.2 Upgrading “Ecosystem Services” 4.3 Ecological Drivers: An Upgrading 4.3.1 Global Pollution 4.3.2 Biodiversity Loss 4.3.3 Altered Biogeochemical Cycles 4.3.4 Land Use and Land Cover Changes 4.3.5 Resource Scarcity 4.3.6 Climate Change 4.3.7 Living Complex Systems Dysfunctions 4.4 Proximate Causes and Landscape Unit Syndromes 4.4.1 Landscape Unit Syndromes 4.4.2 Recover with no Land Cover Change 4.5 Mediating Factors, Epistemology, and Meditation 4.5.1 Epistemology and Bioethics 4.5.2 Faith and Meditation 4.6 The Effects of Anthropogenic Alterations on Human Health 4.6.1 Main Etiological Processes References 5: Landscape Bionomics Dysfunctions and Human Health 5.1 Landscape Alterations and Human Health 5.1.1 Bionomics: the Need of a New Ecological Discipline 5.1.2 Environmental Alteration and Human Health 5.1.2.1 Green Disposition in Wide Cities and its Effects 5.1.2.2 Ethological Information and Environmental Stress 5.1.2.3 Lack of Defense Agents 5.1.2.4 Lack of Hierarchical Relationships 5.2 Correlation between Bionomic Dysfunctions and Mortality Rate 5.2.1 Bionomic Dysfunctions of the Territory Milan-Monza-Brianza 5.2.2 The Correlation Bionomic Functionality/Mortality Rate (72 LU) 5.2.3 Agrarian Landscape Destruction and Increase of Mortality Rate 5.2.4 The Correlation Bionomic Functionality/COVID-19 Insurgence 5.3 Correlation between Bionomic Dysfunctions and Cancer Incidence in Europe 5.3.1 Forest Types and BTC Evaluation in European Countries 5.3.2 Cancer Incidences in Europe and Correlation with Carcinogens Parameters 5.3.3 Cancer Incidences in Europe and Correlation with Carcinogens Attributes 5.4 Relations among Bionomics Parameters and Brain/Environment 5.4.1 The Importance of Bionomic Parameters in Cancer Incidence 5.4.2 Complex Relationships Brain-Environment 5.5 Etiology of Cancer Onset Due to Environmental Alterations 5.5.1 Cancer, as a Systemic Multifactorial Disease, and Stress 5.5.2 Trying to Deepen the Logic Flow Chart of Cancer Onset and Prevention Again 5.6 Conclusion: Environmental Ethic Implications References 6: Agrofood System and Human Health 6.1 Introduction 6.1.1 The Human–Environment Relationship: The Case of Agrofood System 6.2 The Current Scenario and its Aftermaths 6.2.1 Structure and Functions of the Current Industrial Agrofood System: From Green Revolution to Agroecological Transition 6.2.2 Human Health: How the Environment Shapes Human Health 6.2.2.1 The Main Diseases Related to Diets 6.2.2.2 Malnutrition and Health Overweight and Obesity Undernutrition Micronutrient-Related Malnutrition 6.2.2.3 On the Plate: Diseases Attributable to Food and Nutrition Non-communicable Diseases Communicable Diseases: Foodborne Diseases 6.2.2.4 Determinants of Dietary Patterns 6.2.2.5 Environmental Pollutants in Food and Human Health Heavy Metals Endocrine-Disrupting Chemicals Indoor Air Pollution Ambient Air Pollution 6.2.3 Emerging Risks: Antimicrobial Resistance 6.3 Building a Sustainable Circular Agrofood System in the SDGs Framework 6.3.1 The Sustainable Development Framework 6.3.1.1 Wedding Cake Model: The Role of Food in the Sustainability Food and the Biosphere Food and Society Food and Economy 6.3.2 From Sustainable Food Production to Sustainable Food Supply and Consumption: Healthy Diets for Sustainable Agriculture 6.3.2.1 What Is a Healthy Diet? 6.3.2.2 What Is Meant by a Sustainable Diet? 6.3.2.3 The Change of Diet over Time and Consequences 6.3.2.4 Alternative Diets 6.3.3 Education for Sustainable Development and FAO Principles of Agrofood Sustainability 6.4 Conclusions References 7: Environmental Alterations and Oncological Diseases: The Contribution of Network Medicine 7.1 Cancer and the Environment 7.2 Climate Changes and Oncological Diseases 7.3 Heavy Metals and Cancer 7.4 Food and Water Contamination and Risk of Cancer Development 7.5 Network Medicine to Study the Complex Interaction between Many Pollutants on Human Diseases 7.6 Some Shorts Note on Network Science and how it Can Help in Understanding the Connection between Pollution and Cancer References 8: Zootechnical Systems, Ecological Dysfunctions and Human Health 8.1 Introduction 8.2 The Environmental Footprint of Livestock Production Chains 8.2.1 Environmental Footprint Assessment Systems 8.2.2 Measuring the Environmental Footprint in the Food Sector 8.3 Mitigation of Environmental Impacts 8.3.1 The Bioeconomy Paradigm 8.3.2 Technological Innovations for Sustainable Animal Husbandry 8.3.3 The Cross-Compliance Criteria of the CAP (Common Agricultural Policy) 8.3.3.1 Goals 8.3.3.2 Stakeholders 8.3.3.3 Application 8.3.3.4 Duration of Commitments 8.3.3.5 Non-compliance with cross-compliance rules. 8.4 The Protection of Public Health 8.4.1 The Health, Human and Veterinary Prevention System 8.4.2 The “Risk Assessment” of Agricultural Operators 8.4.2.1 Risk Associated with Manual Handling of Loads 8.4.2.2 Risk Related to the Use of Agricultural Means of Transport 8.4.2.3 Risk of Exposure to Hazardous Substances 8.4.2.4 Biohazard 8.4.2.5 Risks and Effects of Noise Exposure 8.4.2.6 Risk Related to the Presence of Overhead Power Lines 8.5 Environment and Health 8.5.1 Health and Ecosystem Services 8.5.2 Environment and Social and Economic Development References 9: Environmental Pollution and Cardiorespiratory Diseases 9.1 Introduction 9.2 Respiratory Diseases 9.2.1 Respiratory Infections 9.3 Allergy and Asthma 9.3.1 Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Diseases (COPD) 9.4 Cardiovascular Disease 9.4.1 Myocardial Infarction 9.4.1.1 The Effect of Temperature 9.4.1.2 Atmospheric Pressure and Latitude 9.4.1.3 Air Pollution 9.4.1.4 Conclusion 9.5 Heart Failure 9.5.1 The Mitochondrial Hypothesis 9.5.2 The Effect of Temperatures 9.5.3 Air Pollutants Associations 9.5.4 Conclusion 9.6 Hypertension 9.6.1 Introduction 9.6.2 Outdoor Temperatures and Seasonality 9.6.3 Noise Pollution 9.6.4 Higher Altitudes 9.6.5 Air Pollutants 9.6.6 Other Environmental Factors 9.6.7 Conclusion References 10: The Impact of Environmental Alterations on Human Microbiota and Infectious Diseases 10.1 Antibiotics 10.2 Heavy Metals 10.3 Microplastics 10.4 Organic Pollutants 10.5 Pesticides 10.5.1 Insecticides 10.5.2 Fungicides 10.5.3 Herbicides 10.6 Food Additives 10.7 The Impact of Environmental Alterations on Infectious Diseases 10.7.1 Water-Related Diseases 10.7.1.1 Classification Waterborne Diseases 10.7.1.2 Water-Washed Diseases Water-Based Diseases Water-Related Vector-Borne Diseases 10.7.2 Food-Borne Diseases 10.7.2.1 Classification Food-Borne Infections Food-Borne Toxicoinfections Food-Borne Intoxications 10.7.2.2 Food Safety Recommendations 10.7.3 Vector-Borne Diseases References 11: The Relationship Between Environment and Mental Health 11.1 Introduction 11.2 How Does the Environment Influence Human Health 11.2.1 Heavy Metals 11.2.2 Indoor Environment 11.2.3 Climatic Factors 11.3 Vulnerability Factors 11.3.1 Frequency and Intensity of the Climatic Events 11.3.2 Access to Infrastructures and Resources 11.3.3 Demographic and Socioeconomic Factors: Are Social Inequalities an Issue? 11.4 Sudden Phenomena with Direct Effects on Human Well-Being 11.5 Progressive Phenomena with Indirect Effects on Human Well-Being 11.5.1 Solastalgia 11.5.2 Eco-Anxiety 11.5.3 Ecological Grief 11.6 How to Prevent and Treat Mental Health References 12: Planetary Health and Healthcare Workers 12.1 Planetary Health Alliance 12.1.1 Planetary Health for Clinicians 12.2 Knowledge and Attitudes Toward Climate Changes in Healthcare Personnel 12.3 One Health Approach 12.4 Methods 12.4.1 Study Selection 12.4.2 Eligibility Criteria 12.4.3 Data Collection Process 12.5 Results 12.5.1 Study Selection 12.5.2 Characteristics of the Studies 12.5.2.1 Accomplished Interventions 12.5.2.2 Future Perspectives 12.5.2.3 Historical Background References 13: Endocrine Disruptors and Human Reproduction 13.1 Introduction 13.2 Endocrine Disruptors 13.3 Relevant Classes of EDs in Human Reproduction 13.3.1 Polychlorinated Biphenyls 13.3.2 Organophosphate Pesticides 13.3.3 Phthalates 13.3.4 Bisphenol-A 13.3.5 Perfluorochemicals 13.4 Impact on Reproduction 13.4.1 Testicular and Ovarian Function 13.4.2 Gonadal Development 13.4.3 Pubertal Development 13.5 Other Reproductive Disease Possibly Linked to EDCs 13.5.1 Polycystic Ovary Syndrome 13.5.2 Endometriosis 13.6 Conclusions References 14: Environmental Factors in the Development of Diabetes Mellitus 14.1 Environment and Endocrine Diseases 14.1.1 Environmental Epigenetics 14.1.2 The Gut Microbiota 14.1.3 Endocrine Disruptors 14.1.3.1 EDCs Classification 14.1.3.2 EDCs Absorption and Metabolism 14.1.3.3 Mechanisms of Action and Effects of EDCs 14.1.3.4 Additional Considerations on EDCs 14.2 Environmental Factors and Type 1 Diabetes Mellitus 14.2.1 Viral Infections and T1DM 14.2.2 The Gut Microbiome 14.2.3 Nutritional Factors 14.2.4 Perinatal and Postnatal Factors 14.2.5 Chemical Compounds 14.2.6 Post-Transcriptional Modifications 14.3 Environmental Factors and Type-2 Diabetes Mellitus 14.3.1 Lifestyle Factors 14.3.2 The Gut Microbiota 14.3.3 Endocrine Disrupting Chemicals (EDCs) 14.3.4 Air Pollution 14.3.5 Epigenetic Changes in T2DM 14.3.6 The Role of Prenatal Exposures on Disease Development 14.4 Environmental Factors and Gestational Diabetes 14.4.1 Environment and Pregnancy 14.4.1.1 The Mother and EDCs: Short- and Long-Term Effects 14.4.1.2 The Newborn and EDCs: Short- and Long-Term Effects 14.4.2 microRNAs as Prognostic and Diagnostic Markers of EDCs’ Effects 14.4.3 Air Pollutants and GDM References 15: Some Landscape and Healthcare Considerations Comparing European Union and Indian Federation 15.1 Similarities and Differences Between European Union and Indian Federation 15.1.1 European Union and India: A Concise Frame Comparison 15.1.2 European Union and India: A Few Words on Urbanization 15.2 Theory and Methodology 15.2.1 Landscape Bionomics Principle and Methods: A Short Recall 15.3 Findings: Landscape Transformations and Health 15.3.1 Forest Evaluation and Climatic Differences 15.3.2 Low-Income Countries and Bionomic Principles 15.3.3 Environmental Transformations 15.4 Some Environment/Cancer Relations 15.5 Some Environment/Diabetes Relations 15.6 Discussion and Conclusion References