Environmental pollution and the global burden of disease

Despite the major efforts that have been made over recent years to clean up the environment, pollution remains a major problem and poses continuing risks to health. The problems are undoubtedly greatest in the developing world, where traditional sources of pollution such as industrial emissions, poor sanitation, inadequate waste management, contaminated water supplies and exposures to indoor air pollution from biomass fuels affect large numbers of people. Even in developed countries, however, environmental pollution persists, most especially amongst poorer sectors of society1,2

In recent decades, too, a wide range of modern pollutants have emerged—not least, those associated with road traffic and the use of modern chemicals in the home, in food, for water treatment and for pest control. Most of these pollutants are rarely present in excessively large concentrations, so effects on health are usually far from immediate or obvious. As Taubes3 has noted, few of the problems of environmental exposure that concern us today imply large relative risks. Detecting small effects against a background of variability in exposure and human susceptibility, and measurement error, poses severe scientific challenges.

The progressively larger number of people exposed to environmental pollution (if only as a result of growing population numbers and increasing urbanization) nevertheless means that even small increases in relative risk can add up to major public health concerns. The emergence of new sources of exposure and new risk factors, some of them—such as endocrine disruptors—with the capacity to have lifelong implications for health, also means that there is a continuing need for both vigilance and action. As the impact of human activities and issues of environmental health become increasingly global in scale and extent, the need to recognize and to address the health risks associated with environmental pollution becomes even more urgent.

In order to better understand and predict the likelihood of success or failure of different innovations in traditional foods it is crucial to know the meaning that the word “Traditional” has in consumers’ minds and what values they relate to this concept. Some definitions of traditional food exist already (Bertozzi, 1998, EU, 2006, EuroFIR, 2007, Jordana, 2000, Ministero Agricoltura, 1999, Trichopoulou et al., 2007, Truefood, 2006), although all of them are coming from the expert’s perspective. The only published definition of traditional food from the consumers’ point of view is the one provided by Guerrero et al. (2009). According to these authors European consumers perceived a traditional food product as “a product frequently consumed or associated with specific celebrations and/or seasons, normally transmitted from one generation to another, made accurately in a specific way according to the gastronomic heritage, with little or no processing/manipulation, distinguished and known because of its sensory properties and associated with a certain local area, region or country”.

This definition was obtained by means of qualitative research using focus groups discussions carried out in six European regions. Focus group discussion is a qualitative exploratory research technique that provides a rational and cognitive approach to a specific topic. However, in some cases, the results may be affected by stereotypes (Krueger, 1988) even when led by an experienced moderator. Social barriers and pressure may bias the expression of feelings, thoughts and self-reported behaviour. In some cases and when interviewed, subjects tend to provide answers that are socially desirable and stereotypical, thus trying to be polite and comply with the supposed answer that the interviewer expects (Will, Eadie, & Macaskill, 1996).