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Statement Of Paolo Chavez
Environmental Protection Agency
Aging Initiative Public Listening Session
Baltimore, Maryland
May 7, 2003
Paolo Chavez
Gerontological Health Section
American Public Health Association
Johns Hopkins University
Gerontological Health Section
American Public Health Association
Johns Hopkins University
Good afternoon.
On behalf of the leadership of the Gerontological Health Section of the American Public Health Association, I would like to express its genuine and high enthusiasm with this initiative from EPA. Promotion of the health of older adults, the broad goal of this initiative, is also a major goal of the American Public Health Association (APHA), which clearly highlighted the need for a healthy environment as a central condition for healthy aging in its policy statement issued last year. Thus, the goals of APHA and the EPA initiative are tied together.
Substantial research effort over the last decades has led to the identification of important environmental risk factors for major diseases, such as cancer and pulmonary disease. However, little is known about the impact of these environmental hazards on the physical and cognitive function of older Americans. Given that multiple chronic conditions such as cardiovascular disease, hypertension, and visual and hearing impairment occur frequently in older adults, this subset of the population might be particularly vulnerable to additional stresses caused by outdoors and indoors environmental hazards. It might even be that exposure to such hazards cause community-dwelling older adults with borderline health status to start having difficulty with activities of daily life, and to eventually become disabled. In addition, because of the presence of these multiple medical conditions, it might be that exposure to environmental hazards, even at levels lower than what is currently considered dangerous, might have a negative impact in the functional capacity of older adults. Thus, to complement current efforts that have aimed at the evaluation of factors such as air, water, and hearing pollution on the occurrence of diseases and impairments in specific physiologic systems, such as heart rate variability and pulmonary function, the investigation of how environmental hazards may impact physical and cognitive function of older adults, as well as how much of functional decline could be prevented if such hazards were eliminated are warranted.
Another potential topic for the National Agenda on the Environment and Aging is the issue related to solid waste generated by incontinence supplies, such as disposable diapers. Given the existing limitation of landfill availability and escalating cost of solid waste management, such waste represents a potential problem. However, because a substantial proportion of the incontinence is theoretically preventable, the development of public health preventive programs in this area can theoretically constitute a win-win situation for both the elderly and the environment.
Finally, injury is one of the top causes of morbidity and mortality in older adults. How to consciously modify the environment to prevent disabling and fatal injuries could potentially have a large impact on disability.