Toxicology and Human Health Flashcards
6 cards from real Environmental Science practice questions. Tap to flip, then mark Knew It or Still Learning — missed cards come back until you master them.
Read the first 6 Toxicology and Human Health flashcards as text
Sick Building Syndrome (SBS) is primarily associated with:
Answer: Poor indoor air quality from inadequate ventilation, VOCs, mold, or chemical off-gassing
SBS describes acute health and comfort effects linked to time spent in a particular building, typically caused by poor ventilation, VOC emissions from building materials, mold, and other indoor air pollutants.
Radon gas is a public health concern in homes primarily because:
Answer: It is a naturally occurring radioactive gas that decays to radioactive particles lodged in lungs, causing lung cancer
Radon (Rn-222) is a decay product of uranium in soil/rock; it seeps into buildings and its short-lived radioactive progeny (polonium isotopes) emit alpha particles when inhaled, damaging lung tissue.
The primary health effect associated with long-term exposure to asbestos fibers is:
Answer: Lung diseases including asbestosis, mesothelioma, and lung cancer
Inhaled asbestos fibers lodge permanently in lung tissue; they cause asbestosis (fibrosis), mesothelioma (cancer of the pleural/peritoneal lining), and lung cancer - all with long latency periods (20-50 years).
The EPA's risk assessment process for carcinogens typically assumes:
Answer: A linear no-threshold (LNT) model where any exposure carries some risk proportional to dose
For genotoxic carcinogens, U.S. EPA typically uses the linear no-threshold (LNT) model, assuming risk is proportional to dose with no completely safe exposure level, to be protective.
Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs) are regulated under the Stockholm Convention primarily because they:
Answer: Resist degradation, bioaccumulate in fatty tissues, travel globally, and cause serious human and ecosystem harm
POPs (DDT, PCBs, dioxins, furans, PBDEs, PFAS) share four properties: persistence (resist degradation), bioaccumulation (concentrate in fat), long-range transport (deposited globally via atmosphere/ocean), and toxicity.
The precautionary approach to chemical risk assessment, as applied in the EU's REACH regulation, requires:
Answer: Manufacturers to demonstrate the safety of chemicals before marketing rather than waiting for evidence of harm
EU REACH (Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation and Restriction of Chemicals) places the burden of proof on industry to demonstrate safety, in contrast to the U.S. approach where regulators must prove harm before restricting a chemical.