Open AccessAir pollution and the noncommunicable disease prevention agenda: opportunities for public health and environmental science
Author(s) -
Eloise Howse,
Melanie Crane,
Ivan Hanigan,
Lucy Gunn,
Paul Crosland,
Ding Ding,
Martin Hensher,
Lucie Rychetnik
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
environmental research letters
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.37
H-Index - 124
ISSN - 1748-9326
DOI - 10.1088/1748-9326/abfba0
Subject(s) - public health , air pollution , environmental planning , work (physics) , environmental health , climate change , business , political science , medicine , environmental science , engineering , mechanical engineering , ecology , chemistry , nursing , organic chemistry , biology
Air pollution is a major environmental risk factor and contributor to chronic, noncommunicable diseases (NCDs). However, most public health approaches to NCD prevention focus on behavioural and biomedical risk factors, rather than environmental risk factors such as air pollution. This article discusses the implications of such a focus. It then outlines the opportunities for those in public health and environmental science to work together across three key areas to address air pollution, NCDs and climate change: (a) acknowledging the shared drivers, including corporate determinants; (b) taking a ‘co-benefits’ approach to NCD prevention; and (c) expanding prevention research and evaluation methods through investing in systems thinking and intersectoral, cross-disciplinary collaborations.