Deck 14: Environmental Hazards and Human Health

Question 1

Only water-soluble toxins can accumulate in body tissues and cells.

Answer 1

False

Question 2

After poverty and gender,the greatest risks people face are mainly from lifestyle choices.

Answer 2

True

Question 3

Most case reports are highly reliable sources for estimating toxicity.

Answer 3

False

Question 4

The most preventable kind of hazard is smoking.

Question 5

​Toxicology is a science devoted to the study of risks to human life.

Question 6

Epidemiological studies can be used to effectively evaluate hazards from new technologies and new chemicals.

Question 7

In the United States,the leading cause of preventable death is tobacco use.

Question 8

Laboratory-bred mice and rats are widely used for toxicity studies because their systems function generally similar to human systems.

Question 9

​The chemical pesticide DDT is persistent,or resistant to breakdown,and can be biologically magnified.

Question 10

The three diseases that cause the majority of deaths worldwide are influenza,hepatitis-B,and SARS.

Question 11

A basic principle of toxicology is that any synthetic or natural chemical can be harmful if ingested or inhaled in a large enough quantity.

Question 12

Synthetic chemicals are always more harmful compared to natural chemicals.

Question 13

​A reason that mercury is so persistent in the environment or living organisms is that it is an element and thus cannot be broken down or degraded.

Question 14

When estimating and calculating the reliability of a given system,experts quantify the reliability of the technology involved and divide that number by the reliability of the human using the technology.

Question 15

Several antimalarial drugs have become more effective against the Plasmodium parasites since about 1970.

Question 16

Studying the interactions among three of the 500 most widely used industrial chemicals is a physical and financial impossibility.

Question 17

Malaria cannot be transmitted by blood transfusions or by sharing needles.

Question 18

All chemicals in commercial use were screened for toxicity before they were made available to the public.

Question 19

The death toll from smoking in the United States is roughly equivalent to more than six fully loaded 200-passenger jet planes crashing every day with no survivors.

Question 20

The blood of an average U.S.citizen contains traces of 212 different chemicals,including potentially harmful chemicals such as arsenic and bisphenol A.

Question 21

​Bisphenol A (BPA)is an estrogen mimic used in the production of ____ products.

A) ​pharmaceutical
B) ​textile
C) ​food
D) ​metals
E) ​plastic

Question 22

​What is expected to happen to populations of malaria-carrying mosquitoes in the coming century?

A) ​Global warming is expected to destroy their habitats.
B) ​Many researchers expect to find a cure for malaria.
C) ​Oral rehydration therapy will be made available to the poor in developing nations.
D) ​The mosquitoes are expected to migrate to warmer areas in the north.
E) ​The WHO will likely approve the use of DDT in more areas.

Question 23

​Malaria is caused by____,which is carried by mosquitoes.

A) ​viruses
B) ​bacteria
C) ​Plasmodium parasites
D) ​parasitic worms
E) ​pathogens

Question 24

​Approximately 2.6 billion people do not have sanitary toilet facilities and more than one billion have their drinking water polluted by ____.

A) ​pathogens
B) ​carcinogens
C) ​mutagens
D) ​feces
E) ​chemicals

Question 25

​Biological hazards can be caused by one of the more than 1,400 ____ that can cause disease.

A) ​parasites
B) ​cultural hazards
C) ​viruses
D) ​mutagens
E) ​pathogens

Question 26

​What is the scientific process of using statistical methods to estimate how much harm a particular hazard can cause to human health or the environment?

A) probability​
B) ​risk assessment
C) ​lifecycle cost-pricing
D) ​mitigation
E) ​prevention

Question 27

​In addition to overuse of antibiotics for colds and flu,what else has caused bacterial resistance to antibiotics?

A) ​The demolition of forest lands
B) ​The draining of marshes
C) ​The use of pesticides to control malaria-infected mosquitoes
D) ​The use of drugs to kill parasites in the bloodstream
E) ​The use of antibiotics to control disease and promote growth in animals raised for meat

Question 28

​What is the worldwide leading cause of death for people ages 15-49?

A) ​E.coli
B) Malaria
C) ​Hepatitis
D) ​AIDS
E) ​Influenza

Question 29

​A ____ disease,like most cancers,is not caused by a living organism and does not spread from one person to another.

A) ​chemical
B) ​transmissible
C) ​nontransmissible
D) ​natural
E) ​cultural

Question 30

​Why has effectively combating the spread of malaria become more challenging since the 1970s?

A) ​Anti-malarial drugs cost too much to be used widely in the less-developed countries where malaria infections are widespread.
B) ​During this century,the average atmospheric temperature had risen,thus causing populations of malaria-carrying mosquitoes to spread from tropical areas to warmer temperate areas of the earth.
C) ​The vaccine that can prevent this disease is expensive.
D) ​The parasite infects and destroys its victim's red blood cells,causing intense fever,chills,drenching sweats,severe abdominal pain,vomiting,headaches,and increased susceptibility to other diseases.
E) ​Most species of the Anopheles mosquito have become genetically resistant to most insecticides and the Plasmodium parasites have become genetically resistant to common antimalarial drugs.

Question 31

​Some researchers estimate that one out of every five people infected with ____ are not aware of the infection.

A) ​E.coli
B) ​Influenza
C) ​Malaria
D) ​HIV
E) ​HBV

Question 32

​What has probably killed more people over the course of human history than all of the wars ever fought?

A) ​flu
B) ​malarial protozoa
C) ​tuberculosis
D) ​diarrhea
E) ​AIDS

Question 33

​A deadly and apparently incurable form of ____ has been spreading,and killing about 150,000 people a year in India,China,and Russia.In order to control the spread of this disease,the victims must be permanently isolated from the rest of society.

A) ​influenza
B) ​HIV
C) ​avian bird flu
D) ​malaria
E) ​tuberculosis

Question 34

​More than 90 published studies have found a number of significant adverse effects on test animals from exposure to very low levels of ____.

A) ​BPA
B) ​mutagens
C) ​teratogens
D) ​carcinogens
E) ​plasmodium

Question 35

​Why has the percentage of deaths due to infectious diseases dropped from 1970 to 2010?

A) ​The use of pesticides has become increasingly effective at killing biological threats.
B) ​There are fewer people living in poverty as nations become more developed.
C) Less people live in disease-prone areas.
D) ​Public health education campaigns have been successful at prevention.
E) ​A growing number of children were immunized against the major infectious diseases.

Question 36

​What is a type of chemical hazard?

A) ​unsafe working conditions
B) ​parasites
C) ​pollution
D) ​bacteria
E) ​fungi

Question 37

​What has played an important role in the 30-year increase in life expectancy since 1950?

A) ​reduced poverty and malnutrition
B) ​improved drinking water quality
C) ​risk management
D) ​risk assessment
E) antibiotics

Question 38

​Ecological medicine is a relatively new field of study devoted to ____.

A) ​finding a cure for AIDS
B) ​the ecology of sick people
C) ​tracking disease connections that are transmitted from animal species to humans
D) ​international diseases such as Avian flu
E) ​the illegal international trade in wild species

Question 39

​We can prevent the spread of infectious diseases by reducing the use of ____.

A) ​antibiotics
B) ​DDT
C) ​toxic chemicals
D) ​unclean water
E) ​pathogens

Question 40

​What do we call the probability of suffering harm from a hazard?

A) ​disease
B) ​economic loss
C) ​death
D) ​injury
E) ​risk

Question 41

​What percentage of synthetic chemicals commonly used today has been adequately tested to determine if they are mutagens,carcinogens,or teratogens?

A) 90%​
B) ​75%
C) ​50%
D) ​25%
E) ​2%

Question 42

​____ can be limited in many cases,because too few people have been exposed to high enough levels of a toxic agent to detect statistically significant differences.

A) ​Risk assessment
B) ​Risk management
C) ​Epidemiological studies
D) ​Persistence samples
E) ​Toxicological studies

Question 43

​The immune system consists of specialized cells and tissues that protect the body against disease and harmful substances by forming ____.

A) ​bisphenol A
B) ​endocrine
C) ​hormones
D) ​antibodies
E) ​phthalates

Question 44

​What is the greatest threat to global human health?

A) ​poverty
B) ​air pollution
C) ​cancer
D) ​tobacco
E) ​pneumonia and flu

Question 45

​The system responsible for defense against disease and harmful substances is the ____.

A) ​circulatory system
B) ​endocrine system
C) ​immune system
D) ​excretory system
E) ​cardiovascular system

Question 46

​You are an aquatic biologist studying a small lake.The stream that drains into this lake runs by croplands.You are detecting a pesticide called atrazine in the insects and worms that live in the lake.The predatory birds such as herons and egrets have very high concentrations of atrazine in their blood.The birds prey on the frogs and small fish.What condition best explains the high atrazine level in the birds?

A) ​acute effects experienced by the birds
B) ​consumption in amounts larger than the lethal dose
C) ​chronic residual effects in the birds
D) ​biological accumulation and magnification
E) ​an increase in ecological toxicity

Question 47

​What is it about carcinogens that cause some people not to believe that their present day habits will lead to cancer?

A) ​Most mutations of carcinogens cause no harm.
B) ​Carcinogens do not cause pain until the very last stages.
C) ​Initial exposure to a carcinogen and the appearance of detectable cancer symptoms has a 10-40 year time lapse.
D) ​Most carcinogens are found in highly addictive substances.
E) ​Carcinogens cannot be seen or touched,and therefore,people do not think about their impact.

Question 48

​The U.S.Environmental Protection Agency currently recommends that regulators assume children face a risk factor ____ times that of adults when exposed to carcinogenic chemicals.

A) ​5
B) ​10
C) ​25
D) ​50
E) ​100

Question 49

​Hormonally active agents (HAAs)are a category of chemical hazards that can do what?

A) ​They can cause poor balance and coordination,muscle weakness,tremors,memory problems,insomnia,hearing loss,loss of hair,and loss of peripheral vision.
B) ​They can cause birth defects,liver cancer,kidney and liver damage,premature breast development,immune system suppression,and abnormal sexual development in these animals.
C) ​They have been suggested to cause brain damage,early puberty,decreased sperm quality,certain cancers,heart disease,obesity,liver damage,impaired immune function,type 2 diabetes,hyperactivity,impaired learning,impotence in males,and obesity in unborn test animals.
D) ​They cause genetic resistance to drugs like antibiotics.
E) ​They are pollutants that can act as thyroid disrupters and cause growth,weight,brain,and behavioral disorders.

Question 50

​A person that develops asthma after living in a city with severe air pollution for decades is experiencing a(n)____.

A) ​chronic effect
B) ​subchronic effect
C) ​acute effect
D) ​subacute effect
E) ​superacute effect

Question 51

​If you typically consume large amounts of processed foods,and certain wines,which category of chemical hazard is introduced into your system?

A) ​Mutagens
B) ​Carcinogens
C) ​Teratogens
D) ​Neurotoxins
E) ​Antibodies

Question 52

​Mutagens can cause or increase the frequency of mutations in the ____ molecules found in cells.

A) water​
B) ​carbohydrate
C) DNA
D) ​fat
E) ​RNA

Question 53

​What is a disease that where malignant cells can multiply uncontrollably and form tumors?

A) ​impaired immune function
B) ​genetic disorder
C) ​thyroid disease
D) ​cancer
E) ​mutation

Question 54

​What is a chemical's median lethal dose?

A) ​This is the dose where an animal would be expected to show an acute response.
B) ​This corresponds to the highest point on a dose-response curve.
C) ​This is the level that a chemical becomes slightly toxic.
D) ​This is the dose that can kill 50% of the animals in a test population within a given time period.
E) ​This is the dose that will kill most of the medium sized animals in a test population.

Question 55

​Some forms of ____ can grow from a population of 1 to well over 16 million in 24 hours.

A) bacteria
B) ​viruses
C) ​protozoan parasites
D) ​recovery botanical specialist
E) ​Anopheles

Question 56

​Vinyl chloride is found in many plastics and is an example of a _____.

A) ​pathogen
B) ​neurotoxin
C) ​teratogen
D) ​mutagen
E) ​carcinogen

Question 57

​What type of toxic agent can harm or cause birth defects in a fetus or embryo?

A) ​carcinogens
B) ​mutagens
C) ​pathogens
D) ​teratogens
E) ​neurotoxins

Question 58

​A person experiencing dizziness after using a strong household cleaner is showing a(n)____.

A) ​chronic effect
B) ​subchronic effect
C) ​acute effect
D) ​subacute effect
E) ​superacute effect

Question 59

​Single cell organisms that are found everywhere and can multiply rapidly on their own are called ____.

A) ​carcinogens
B) ​mutagens
C) parasites
D) ​bacteria
E) ​viruses

Question 60

​The three deadliest viruses in the world are pneumonia and flu,HIV/AIDS,and ____.

A) ​measles
B) ​hepatitis B
C) ​malaria
D) ​tuberculosis
E) ​diarrheal diseases

Question 61

The chemicals PCBs,arsenic,and lead are all examples of ____________________.

Question 62

A(n)____________________ is the probability of suffering harm from a hazard that can cause injury,disease,death,economic loss,or damage.

Question 63

A(n)____________________ is a disease caused by a pathogen such as a bacterium,virus,or parasite that invades the body and multiplies in its cells and tissues.

Question 64

A global-scale outbreak of an infectious disease such as tuberculosis or AIDS is called a(n)______________________________.

Question 65

Although it has been largely phased out in most countries,the World Health Organization (WHO)supports the limited use of ____________________ to control the spread of malaria.

Question 66

An alternative approach to combating _____________ is to provide free or inexpensive insecticide-treated bed nets to poor people in the regions most affected.

Question 67

​Malaria is transmitted by 60 species of the ____________________.

Question 68

​What is the preventive strategy that would contribute most to longer lifespans?

A) ​Do not smoke.
B) Get regular exercise.​
C) ​Practice safe driving techniques.
D) ​Avoid alcohol consumption.
E) ​Avoid risky practices such as flying.

Question 69

A(n)____________________ is a toxic agent that can cause birth defects.

Question 70

​Nitrous acid (HNO2),formed by the digestion of nitrite (NO2)preservatives in foods,can cause ____________________ that are linked to increases in stomach cancer in people who consume large amounts of processed foods and wine containing such preservatives.

Question 71

​Human reliability is generally ____ technology reliability.

A) ​much greater than
B) ​slightly greater than
C) ​slightly lower than
D) ​much lower than
E) ​the same as

Question 72

​What is a principle that can help us evaluate risk?

A) ​When faced with a risk,make comparisons with other risks.
B) ​Focus on the lowest level of risk in every situation.
C) ​Consult with a risk evaluation expert.
D) ​Follow media reports on current risk levels of emerging technologies.
E) ​Avoid all synthetic chemicals.

Question 73

​How would decreasing human reliability while maintaining the same level of technological reliability affect the system reliability?

A) ​The answer would depend on what kind of system is being used.
B) ​The system reliability would stay the same.
C) ​The system reliability would increase.
D) ​The system reliability would decrease.
E) ​The system would become increasingly stable.

Question 74

​Some organisms live on or inside other organisms and feed on them,and can cause serious infectious diseases,including malaria.These are known as ____________________.

Question 75

​Some research indicates that ____ causes people to overestimate risks and to worry more about unusual risks more so than common risks.

A) ​a lack of control
B) ​fear
C) ​the level of catastrophic risk
D) ​optimism bias
E) ​instant gratification

Question 76

The process of using statistical methods to estimate potential harm from a particular hazard is called ____________________.

Question 77

​The third largest viral killer in the world is ____________________.

Question 78

A(n)____________________ effect is an immediate or rapid reaction to exposure to a harmful substance.

Question 79

The overuse of ____________________ can cause bacteria to develop genetic resistance.

Question 80

An important breakthrough to help prevent death from dehydration for victims of severe diarrhea has been the development of _________________________.​