Identifying children's environmental health risks, needs, misconceptions, and opportunities for research translation using social media.

As part of the Advancing Science, Practice, Programming, and Policy in Research Translation for Children's Environmental Health (ASPIRE) center, machine learning, geographic information systems (GIS), and natural language processing to analyze more than 650 million posts related to children's environmental health are being used. Using preliminary analyses as examples, this commentary discusses the potential opportunities, benefits, challenges, and limitations of children's health social media analytics. Social media contains large volumes of contextually rich data that describe children's health risks and needs, characteristics of homes and childcare locations important to environmental exposures, and parent and childcare provider perceptions, awareness of, and misconceptions about children's environmental health.

An overview of the Be Well Home Health Navigator Program to reduce contaminants in well water: Design and methods.

Background: The Be Well Home Health Navigator Program is a prospective, randomized controlled trial (RCT) implemented to compare a community health navigator program to usual care program to reduce contaminants in drinking water.

Design And Setting: This 4-year two-armed RCT will involve well owners in Oregon that have private drinking water wells that contain arsenic, nitrate, or lead above maximum contaminant levels.

Intervention: The intervention leverages the trusted relationship between Cooperative Extension Service (CES) Community Educators and rural well owners to educate, assist and motivate to make decisions and set actionable steps to mitigate water contamination.

Organophosphate ester flame retardants and plasticizers in house dust and mental health outcomes among Canadian mothers: A nested prospective cohort study in CHILD.

Organophosphate ester flame retardants and plasticizers (OPEs) are common exposures in modern built environments. Toxicological models report that some OPEs reduce dopamine and serotonin in the brain. Deficiencies in these neurotransmitters are associated with anxiety and depression.

Diffusive fluxes of persistent organic pollutants between Arctic atmosphere, surface waters and sediments.

Arctic communities are disproportionately exposed to pollutants from sources including global atmospheric transport and formerly used defense sites (FUDS). The effects of climate change and increasing development in the Arctic have the potential to exacerbate this problem. Yupik People of Sivuqaq, or St Lawrence Island, Alaska are one such community with documented exposures to pollutants from FUDS, and their traditional lipid-rich foods such as blubber and rendered oils of marine mammals.

Effects of chronic exposure to arsenic on the fecal carriage of antibiotic-resistant Escherichia coli among people in rural Bangladesh.

Antibiotic resistance is a leading cause of hospitalization and death worldwide. Heavy metals such as arsenic have been shown to drive co-selection of antibiotic resistance, suggesting arsenic-contaminated drinking water is a risk factor for antibiotic resistance carriage. This study aimed to determine the prevalence and abundance of antibiotic-resistant Escherichia coli (AR-Ec) among people and drinking water in high (Hajiganj, >100 μg/L) and low arsenic-contaminated (Matlab, <20 μg/L) areas in Bangladesh.

Testing the Limit: Evaluating Drinking Water Arsenic Regulatory Levels Based on Adverse Pregnancy Outcomes in Bangladesh.

(1) Background: Arsenic (As) is a common drinking water contaminant that is regulated as a carcinogen. Yet, As is a systemic toxicant and there is considerable epidemiological data showing As adversely impacts reproductive health. This study used data from a birth cohort in Bangladesh (2008−2011) to examine associations between drinking water As levels and reproductive outcomes.

A prospective study of arsenic and manganese exposures and maternal blood pressure during gestation.

Background: Pregnancy is a sensitive time for maternal cardiovascular functioning and exposures to arsenic or manganese may adversely affect blood pressure (BP).

Objectives: This study examined the associations between arsenic and manganese exposures and maternal BP measured during pregnancy. Effect modification by pre-pregnancy body mass index (BMI) was evaluated.

Household use of crop residues and fuelwood for cooking and newborn birth size in rural Bangladesh.

Objectives: We aimed to investigate the association between type of cooking biomass fuels (crop residues vs fuelwood) and newborn birth outcomes in Bangladeshi children.

Methods: In this birth cohort study, pregnant women who were 18 years or older with ultrasound confirmed singleton pregnancy of ≤16 weeks of gestation were enrolled from two Bangladesh clinics between January 2008 and June 2011. Exposure to cooking biomass fuels during pregnancy was assessed by an administered questionnaire.

Developing a Short Assessment of Environmental Health Literacy (SA-EHL).

Environmental health literacy (EHL) is defined as the understanding of how the environment can impact human health, yet there are few tools to quantify EHL. We adapted the Short Assessment of Health Literacy (SAHL) to create the Short Assessment of Environmental Health Literacy (SA-EHL). Using the Amazon mTurk platform, users ( = 864) completed the 18-item SAHL and the 17-item SA-EHL.

Associations between residential proximity to oil and gas extraction and hypertensive conditions during pregnancy: a difference-in-differences analysis in Texas, 1996-2009.

Background: Oil and gas extraction produces air pollutants that are associated with increased risks of hypertension. To date, no study has examined residential proximity to oil and gas extraction and hypertensive conditions during pregnancy. This study quantifies associations between residential proximity to oil and gas development on gestational hypertension and eclampsia.

Associations between Residential Proximity to Oil and Gas Drilling and Term Birth Weight and Small-for-Gestational-Age Infants in Texas: A Difference-in-Differences Analysis.

Background: Oil and natural gas extraction may produce environmental pollution at levels that affect reproductive health of nearby populations. Available studies have primarily focused on unconventional gas drilling and have not accounted for local population changes that can coincide with drilling activity.

Objective: Our study sought to examine associations between residential proximity to oil and gas drilling and adverse term birth outcomes using a difference-in-differences study design.

Umbilical Cord Blood Metal Mixtures and Birth Size in Bangladeshi Children.

Background: Studies have evaluated environmental exposure to toxic metals such as arsenic (As), cadmium (Cd), manganese (Mn), or lead (Pb) on birth size; however, information on potential effects of exposures to metal mixtures is limited.

Objectives: We assessed the association between metal mixtures (As, Cd, Mn, Pb) in umbilical cord blood and neonate size in Bangladeshi children.

Methods: In this birth cohort study, pregnant women who were of age with an ultrasound-confirmed singleton pregnancy of gestation were recruited from two Bangladesh clinics between 2008 and 2011.

Trends in urinary metabolites of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in the non-smoking U.S. population, NHANES 2001-2014.

Background: Recent studies indicate airborne PAH levels have decreased in the U.S., but it is unclear if this has resulted in PAH exposure changes in the U.

Urinary polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons concentrations and hepatitis B antibody serology in the United States (NHANES, 2003-2014).

Background: Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are environmental contaminants that are hepatotoxic and immunotoxic. PAH exposure may modulate hepatitis B immunology.

Objective: We used data from 6 cycles of the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (2003-2014) to evaluate the associations between urinary PAH metabolites and hepatitis B serology.

Assessing the effectiveness of vehicle emission regulations on improving perinatal health: a population-based accountability study.

Background: Since the 1990s, extensive regulations to reduce traffic-related air pollution (TRAP) have been implemented, yet the effectiveness of these regulations has not been assessed with respect to improving infant health. In this study, we evaluate how infant health risks associated with maternal residences near highways during pregnancy have changed over time.

Methods: We created a population-based retrospective birth cohort with geocoded residential addresses in Texan metropolitan areas from 1996 through 2009 (n = 2 259 411).

A prospective cohort study of in utero and early childhood arsenic exposure and infectious disease in 4- to 5-year-old Bangladeshi children.

Background: Previous research found that infants who were exposed to high levels of arsenic in utero had an increased risk of infectious disease in the first year of life. This prospective study examined the association between arsenic exposures during gestation, and respiratory, diarrheal, and febrile morbidity in children 4-5 years of age.

Methods: A cohort of pregnant women was recruited in 2008-2011 in Bangladesh.

Evaluating the effects between metal mixtures and serum vaccine antibody concentrations in children: a prospective birth cohort study.

Background: Many populations are exposed to arsenic, lead, and manganese. These metals influence immune function. We evaluated the association between exposure to single and multiple metals, including arsenic, lead, and manganese, to humoral immunity as measured by antibody concentrations to diphtheria and tetanus toxoid among vaccinated Bangladeshi children.

Cord blood DNA methylation of DNMT3A mediates the association between in utero arsenic exposure and birth outcomes: Results from a prospective birth cohort in Bangladesh.

Background: Fetal epigenetic programming plays a critical role in development. DNA methyltransferase 3 alpha (DNMT3A), which is involved in de novo DNA methylation (DNAm), is a prime candidate gene as a mediator between prenatal exposures and birth outcomes. We evaluated the relationships between in utero arsenic (As) exposure, birth outcomes, and DNMT3A DNAm.

Impact of local and regional sources of PAHs on tribal reservation air quality in the U.S. Pacific Northwest.

Atmospheric fine particulate matter (PM) transports polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) regionally and globally, influencing the air quality of communities around the planet. Concentrations of 130 PAHs extracted from PM, collected on a Native American Tribal Reservation in the Northern Puget Sound region of the American Pacific Northwest, were used to assess the air quality impacts of regional and local PAH sources, atmospheric transport, and human health implications. Wind coming from the southeast of the sampling locations increased the overall PAH concentration of the PM, while winds from the southwest decreased the PAH concentration.

A passive sampling model to predict PAHs in butter clams (Saxidomus giganteus), a traditional food source for Native American tribes of the Salish Sea Region.

Native Americans face disproportionate exposures to environmental pollution through traditional subsistence practices including shellfish harvesting. In this study, the collection of butter clams (Saxidomus giganteus) was spatially and temporally paired with deployment of sediment pore water passive samplers at 20 locations in the Puget Sound region of the Salish Sea in the Pacific Northwest, USA, within adjudicated usual and accustomed tribal fishing grounds and stations. Clams and passive samplers were analyzed for 62 individual PAHs.

Arsenic Drinking Water Violations Decreased across the United States Following Revision of the Maximum Contaminant Level.

Arsenic poses a threat to public health due to widespread environmental prevalence and known carcinogenic effects. In 2001, the US EPA published the Final Arsenic Rule (FAR) for public drinking water, reducing the maximum contaminant level (MCL) from 50 to 10 μg/L. We investigated impacts of the FAR on drinking water violations temporally and geographically using the Safe Drinking Water Information System.

Arsenic exposure and serum antibody concentrations to diphtheria and tetanus toxoid in children at age 5: A prospective birth cohort in Bangladesh.

Background: Arsenic can impair immune function. Timing of exposure can influence potential immunotoxicity of arsenic exposure. We examined the association between drinking water arsenic concentrations (W-As) measured repeatedly during different exposure windows in early life and serum concentrations of IgG antibodies against diphtheria and tetanus toxoids (diphtheria and tetanus antibody).

Fecal Colonization With Multidrug-Resistant Among Healthy Infants in Rural Bangladesh.

Third generation cephalosporins (3GC) are one of the main choices for treatment of infections caused by multidrug-resistant (MDR) Gram-negative bacteria. Due to their overuse, an increasing trend of resistance to 3GC has been observed in developing countries. Here, we describe fecal colonization of 3GC-resistant (3GCr) in healthy infants (1-12 months old) living in rural areas of Bangladesh.