Category: National Center for Environmental Health

Photojournalism Focuses on Climate Change in Pacific Islands

Climate change is any significant variation in temperature, precipitation, wind, or other type of weather that lasts for decades or longer. Pristine waters, lush vegetation, picturesque landscapes, remote location….. This sounds like the stuff of travel guides—words that conjure up images of a vacationer’s paradise. But these alluring descriptors aren’t about “Fantasy Island.” Think Pacific Read More >

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Coming Soon: 2013 Hurricane Season

The 2013 hurricane season begins tomorrow, June 1, and runs through November 30. It’s time to get ready! The 2012 hurricane season was the second consecutive year that a named storm devastated the mid-Atlantic and Northeast. Both Sandy and Irene (2011) caused fatalities, injuries, and tremendous destruction from coastal storm surge, heavy rainfall, inland flooding, Read More >

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The Asthma (Counter) Attack

MAY is Asthma and Allergy Awareness Month. Knowing triggers and having an action plan can help control your asthma. Seven-year-old Michael’s home was literally making him sick. The young Flint, Michigan boy was a frequent visitor to the emergency room and doctor’s office. In one school year, he was out sick for a combined total Read More >

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Get More Exercise: Bike to Work

Bike to Work week is May 13-17, 2013. Whether for health, environmental, economic, or social reasons, bicycling can be a great way to go places. CDR Arthur M. Wendel, MD, MPH is Team Lead of the Healthy Community Design Initiative at CDC’s National Center for Environmental Health. He has been using his bicycle as a Read More >

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Coming Out of the Toxic Clouds

 May is National Clean Air Month. NCEH’s Tobacco Lab has provided essential research and data that has contributed to a significant decrease in the levels of secondhand tobacco smoke in nonsmokers. Read about their exciting work below. Work in NCEH’s Tobacco Laboratory Helps Reduce Exposure to Secondhand Smoke If you saw a cloud of smoke Read More >

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What Is Environmental Health?

April 22 marks the 43nd anniversary of Earth Day, which reminds us of our personal and collective responsibility to preserve and protect our environment. At CDC’s National Center for Environmental Health (NCEH) and the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR), we begin our celebration of Earth Day by observing National Environmental Education Week Read More >

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International Environmental Health

April 7 is United Nations World Health Day, marking the anniversary of the founding of the World Health Organization (WHO) in 1948. CDC works in close partnership with WHO and its regional offices, other UN agencies (like UNICEF) as well as other international health agencies to help people throughout the world live healthier, safer, longer Read More >

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Unpredictable Spring Weather

Spring is the time of year when many things change—including the weather. Sunny days may be followed by a week of stormy weather. Sometimes extreme weather changes can occur within the same day. Thunderstorms cause most of the severe spring weather. Whenever warm, moist air collides with cool, dry air, thunderstorms can occur, bringing with Read More >

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Clean Water for All: World Water Day 2013

In 1993, the UN General Assembly declared March 22 as World Water Day. This post recognizes NCEH/ATSDR work to assure clean water. Can you remember a time when you were so thirsty you would have done almost anything for a glass of cool, refreshing water? Now imagine that the only water available to you is Read More >

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Walking—Cheap Exercise, But Is It Safe?

CDC’s Healthy Community Design Initiative (HCDI) is dedicated to creating neighborhoods where health and safety are priorities. In this blog post, HCDI staff member Dee Merriam explains how communities can provide more opportunities for exercise right where people live. Can exercise be convenient? Getting into the habit of exercising can be a challenge. But this Read More >

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