Environment and Health in Central and Eastern Europe · A Report for the Environmental Action Programme for Central and Eastern Europe

The purpose of this report is to evaluate the influence of environmental pollution on human health in comparison with other determinants of health in Central and Eastern Europe; to summarize current knowledge about locations in Central and Eastern Europe where environmental pollution has influenced human health; and to identify the principal types of environmental action. In general, there have been few well-designed studies of the effect of environmental pollution on human health, so that environmental exposures have been inadequately characterized. The people of Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) have had to content not only with environmental problems, but also with many other threats to their health, from social conditions, behavioral and lifestyle factors, and shortcomings in medical care. While environmental exposure is not the only threat to health in the region, the evidence suggests that health damage due to pollution is significant.