FAQs

Children are especially vulnerable to environmental hazards because, beginning at the fetal stage and continuing through adolescence, they are physiologically very different from adults. They are in a dynamic state of growth, with cells multiplying and organ systems developing at a rapid rate. At birth, their nervous, respiratory, reproductive, and immune systems are not yet fully developed. Young children breathe more rapidly and take in more air in proportion to their body weight than adults. They also have higher metabolic rates and a higher proportionate food and liquid intake than adults. And infants and toddlers can be at increased risk of some hazards due to their unique behaviors, such as crawling and putting their hands to their mouths.

No. Children in lower-income communities and communities of color are at greater risk of suffering harm from environmental hazards. Children from communities of color often have a greater risk of exposure to pollution at home, at school, and playing in their neighborhoods. Past racist practices like redlining and current injustices like sacrifice zones mean that many predominantly Black and Brown neighborhoods have been subject to chronic and purposeful dis-investment, reducing community health resources and infrastructure. These policies and practices also mean that hazardous waste sites, fossil fuel energy production sites, and other polluting industries, as well as major high-traffic roadways, are more likely to be located near communities of color regardless of income. Children growing up with greater exposure to pollutants are at higher risk of poor health and disability. All children deserve clean air and water, safe and healthy food and products, and healthy places to live, learn, and play, no matter their zip code, or the color of their skin. Addressing racism is at the core of achieving health equity, especially from a children’s environmental health perspective.

Globally, children bear an estimated 88% of the burden of disease due to climate change. Climate change exacerbates environmental health risks to children, with impacts including an increased severity of adverse weather events such as floods, hurricanes, and extreme temperatures, as well as an increase in wildfires, infectious diseases, degraded air quality, and threats to food and water security. Children and pregnant individuals are most vulnerable to these direct and indirect effects and must be intentionally included in the discourse, research, action, and policy addressing climate change.

NIEHS

The National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) is a part of the National Institutes of Health, which is in turn a part of the United States Department of Health and Human Services. NIEHS has developed and sustained a strong base of children’s environmental health (CEH) research projects for more than 20 years. Over the past 10 years, NIEHS has invested more than $1 billion in CEH research, including founding and hosting the Network of WHO Collaborating Centres for Children’s Environmental Health.

Children’s Centers

Their primary approach has been through the NIEHS/EPA Children’s Environmental Health and Disease Prevention Research Centers (Children’s Centers), which were established to explore ways to reduce children’s health risks from environmental factors. The NIEHS/EPA Children’s Environmental Health and Disease Prevention Centers Impact Report highlights some of the important contributions the centers made toward reducing the burden of environmentally induced or exacerbated diseases placed on children.

Building on the past

The NIEHS Collaborative Centers in Children’s Environmental Health Research and Translation builds upon NIEHS’s CEH foundation and aims to establish a national network of centers to develop strategies to translate key CEH research findings to relevant stakeholders.

Science into action

A primary mission of this program is to move the science into actions to protect children’s health. Effective translation of research findings requires collective expertise and collaboration of researchers from various disciplines, such as environmental health sciences, communication, behavioral and social sciences, dissemination and implementation science, medicine, policy, and more. 

What CEHRT Centers do

These centers create new tools, approaches, and interventions, grounded in the research findings, that can be used or adapted by stakeholders to improve children’s health in communities with increased exposure to environmental hazards. Additionally, they provide mentorship opportunities to build a pathway of new investigators in CEH with an emphasis on translation of research into practical tools and risk-management strategies.