Environmental physicians focus on recognizing, treating and preventing illnesses caused by exposure to biological and chemical triggers in air, food and water.Environmental physicians focus on recognizing, treating and preventing illnesses caused by exposure to biological and chemical triggers in air, food and water.
- The president of the American Academy of Environmental Medicine (AAEM),
- Amy L. Dean, DO, first became aware of the environment’s impact on health as a child. She observed her mother suffer precipitous cognitive decline that was eventually attributed to exposure to cleaning solvents.
After majoring in biology at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, Dr. Dean went to work for an environmental medicine physician for a year, assisting with research.
At an AAEM conference, she became acquainted with DOs who convinced her that the whole-patient approach of osteopathic medicine would mesh well with her already strong views on holistic health care and the need to find the underlying causes of symptoms and conditions.
She earned her DO degree from the A.T. Still University-Kirksville (Mo.) College of Osteopathic Medicine in 2000. With her sister, a nutritionist, Dr. Dean opened Ecological Internal Medicine in 2004. The mostly referral-based Ann Arbor practice has succeeded financially by keeping overhead low and not accepting insurance.
Diseases in Indigenous communities caused by germs and parasites resulting from inadequate domestic and personal hygiene
food poisoning.
gastroenteritis.
diarrhoea caused by Campylobacter.
pneumonia.
trachoma.
skin infections.
The Results
As part of this study, NSF microbiologists swabbed 26 different public places, testing for the level of aerobic plate count (APC), also known as the general bacterial population, at each location.
Our team found that the location that harbored the highest level of bacteria was a playground sandbox, revealing a combined count of 7,440 aerobic bacteria, yeast and mold per gram.
Sandboxes are an ideal setting for bacteria, as they are not only exposed to wildlife, such as cats and raccoons, but they can also hold on to bacteria that is left from human contact, such as saliva, food items and other bacteria from human hands.