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European Eco-Cooperation, Linking Oceans and Human Health

EurOcean 2014, convened by the Italian Presidency of the Council of the European Union, the European Marine Board, the European Commission and three Italian partner institutions: the National Research Council, National Inter-university Consortium for Ocean Science and the National Institute of Oceanography and Experimental Geophysics, has issued the first of 18 priorities cited in a declaration that adds momentum to a European Marine Board report, Linking Oceans and Human Health (Tinyurl.com/OceansAndHealth). Participants identified four high-level policy goals: valuing the ocean; capitalizing on European leadership: advancing ocean knowledge: and breaking scientific barriers.

Newly-discovered toxic nanoparticles and swelling micro-plastic marine pollution, with concerns emerging about higher seawater temperatures incubating chemical carcinogens, pose several new perils to human health.

Jan Mees, chair of the European Marine Board, states, "To truly progress our knowledge, European scientists across a broad range of disciplines and domains must make a quantum leap towards holistic approaches and integrated research on a scale that will help us to much better understand, protect, manage and sustainably exploit the seas and oceans that surround us. This is a grand challenge; not just in Europe, but for human society as a whole."

Source: Eurocean2014.eu

 

 

Global Briefs
Tick Talk

Spring officially sprung on March 21. We have turned our clocks ahead. We are looking forward to warm winds, sunny skies and the smell of fresh cut grass. The daffodils and tulips have recently bloomed and we are just starting with the yard work that comes with the warmer weather.  Sadly, another season has started ramping up.  Tick season.

•             The best form of protection is prevention. Educating oneself about tick activity and how our behaviors overlap with tick habitats is the first step.

•             According to the NJ DOH, in 2022 Hunterdon County led the state with a Lyme disease incidence rate of 426 cases per 100,000 people. The fact is ticks spend approximately 90% of their lives not on a host but aggressively searching for one, molting to their next stage or over-wintering. This is why a tick remediation program should be implemented on school grounds where NJ DOH deems high risk for tick exposure and subsequent attachment to human hosts.

•             Governor Murphy has signed a bill that mandates tick education in NJ public schools. See this for the details.  Tick education must now be incorporated into K-12 school curriculum. See link:

https://www.nj.gov/education/broadcasts/2023/sept/27/TicksandTick-BorneIllnessEducation.pdf

•             May is a great month to remind the public that tick activity is in full swing. In New Jersey, there are many tickborne diseases that affect residents, including Anaplasmosis, Babesiosis, Ehrlichiosis, Lyme disease, Powassan, and Spotted Fever Group Rickettsiosis.

•             For years, the focus has mainly been about protecting ourselves from Lyme disease. But other tick-borne diseases are on the rise in Central Jersey. An increase of incidence of Babesia and Anaplasma are sidelining people too. These two pathogens are scary because they effect our blood cells. Babesia affects the red blood cells and Anaplasma effects the white blood cells.

•             Ticks can be infected with more than one pathogen. When you contract Lyme it is possible to contract more than just that one disease. This is called a co-infection. It is super important to pay attention to your symptoms. See link.

https://twp.freehold.nj.us/480/Disease-Co-Infection

A good resource from the State:

https://www.nj.gov/health/cd/topics/tickborne.shtml

 

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