As children, if we cut ourselves at the beach, our mothers told us to wash it in the ocean - seawater was always perceived to be clean and healthy. We are seeing ominous signs that this is changing - surfers in California are now advised to have regular hepatitis inoculations and you really don't want to expose an open wound to near shore water. We should begin to worry deeply about the health of the oceans. |
Human activities are knocking things out of balance. For some pathogens, we're seeing nasty synergistic effects with contaminants, such as PCBs. |
Paradoxically, diseases also play an important role in healthy ecosystem functioning. These changes tend to slip under the radar screen until they show up in ecological cascades that lead to wildlife and human health problems. |