食品伙伴網報道，據美國食品安全新聞網8月11日消息，在美國國內大規模恢復被原油泄漏所影響的墨西哥灣漁業的同時，美國衛生與公共服務部部長授意醫學研究所召開一個研討會，對墨西哥灣原油泄漏對健康的影響進行了研究討論。本周，該研究所發布了一份研討的摘要，其中強調了原油泄漏對健康潛在影響的復雜性，以及仍需要更多的研究及相關數據才能得到結論。
英國石油公司在墨西哥灣的原油泄漏將如何影響人體健康？答案很簡單：我們也不知道。受命負責針對此問題進行調查的醫學研究所稱：墨西哥灣原油泄漏是史無前例的，從泄漏點向環境中泄露的原油的量，泄露所持續的時間，以及自然界的動態變化，這些因素都使墨西哥灣原油泄漏對人體健康影響的研究具有挑戰性。
在進行了一周的會議通知之后，今年6月，37名專家及一些公共衛生官員等300多人，在新奧爾良市參加了本次研討會。與會者就該如何衡量及減輕原油泄漏對公共健康的影響進行了討論。根據該簡報，與會專家的討論涉及的主題范圍之廣泛，從生態系統的水質到高危人群，但是每個議題都有一個共同之處：科學家無法對全方位的健康影響做出預測。
報告稱墨西哥灣原油泄漏對生理、心理、及社會經濟可能會造成的潛在的影響。以及在影響區域內，海灣清理對人體健康的長期及短期的影響不明，而被影響的人群包括陸地及沿海的負責清理原油的工作人員、漁民、其他商業人員、居民、游客以及整個社區。
一位環境放射學專業的研究人員強調：食物污染的風險并不一定局限于海鮮，在墨西哥灣地區，潛在的毒素進入食品供應是一個需要考慮的特別問題。他建議有必要進行廣泛的監控。報告中稱，需要通過收集包括食物、空氣、水質等不同的樣品進行監測，才能了解在墨西哥灣地區潛在的毒素是否對食品供應造成影響。并且食品抽樣不僅只限于海鮮檢測，對捕魚捕蝦的裝置器械也應當進行監控，此外，對水質的調查也應該加強對當地應用水源的監控等等。 此外，一位公共衛生學教授對自然存在的細菌表示了擔心，因為有類細菌能夠吸收分解一些石油化工品，而這些代謝石油的細菌需要氧氣，若它們要分解大量的原油，則可能會導致一個更大的物種死亡（編者注，可能此處指與海藻魚蝦爭奪更多的氧氣，從而造成了魚蝦等的死亡），這對人類的健康可能會造成間接的后果。
該報告稱：這次研討會僅僅是對這件事情的長期的（可能幾十年之久）討論的一個開端，公共衛生官員、科學工作者以及社區領導，必須有充分的努力來克服原油泄漏對健康的影響。
by Helena Bottemiller | Aug 11, 2010
How will the BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico impact human health? The short answer: we don't know.
At the direction of Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius, the Institute of Medicine recently held a workshop on the health effects of the Gulf oil spill. This week, the group released a summary of the discussion, which emphasized the complexity of potential health impacts and the need for more data and research.
"The oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico is unprecedented," according to the Institute. "From the origin of the leak, to the amount of oil released into the environment, to the spill's duration and ongoing nature, the Gulf oil spill poses unique challenges to human health."
With a week's notice, 37 experts and public health officials and over 300 participants gathered in New Orleans for the workshop in June to begin the discussion on how to measure and mitigate the public health impact of the spill.
According to the report, the expert discussion touched on a wide variety of topics, from water quality to ecosystems to at-risk populations, but there was one unifying theme: scientists cannot predict the full range of health consequences.
"The potential physical, psychological, and socioeconomic impacts of the Gulf oil spill and clean-up response on the short- and long-term health of individuals in the affected region--including land- and sea-based clean-up workers, fishermen, and other commercial workers, residents, visitors, and communities as a whole--are unknown," reads the report.
William Farland, a researcher at Colorado State Unviversity in environmental and radiological science, emphasized that food contamination risks were not necessarily limited to seafood. "The potential for toxins to enter the food supply is a particularly important issue to consider in the Gulf," reads the summary of Farland's presentation.
Farland said he believes widespread monitoring will be necessary.
"Understanding the source-to-receptor pathways in the Gulf, including toxicity in the food supply, will require gathering several types of data through various types of monitoring activities, including food, air, and water sampling," said the report.
"Food sampling should involve not just seafood testing but also creel surveys and game monitoring, given that there are local populations of subsistence hunters and fishermen," the report continues. "With respect to water sampling, while it is unlikely that contamination will move far enough inland to affect underground water systems, it is important to ensure that disposal plans for various items (e.g., used personal protective equipment) address the issue of potential contamination of local wells."
Dr. Bernard Goldstein, a professor at University of Pittsburgh's school of public health, discussed naturally existing bacteria being able to ingest and break down some of the oil chemical compounds. "These oil-metabolizing bacteria require oxygen," reads the summary. "An increase in their numbers caused by a large food source could result in an even larger dead zone, which has potentially indirect consequences for human health."
"As elaborated throughout the workshop, there are many unanswered questions about at-risk populations, potential hazards (including exposures) to human health, the potential effects of these hazards, and how best to minimize hazards," says the report.
According to the Institute of Medicine, some of the uncertainty "stems from the enormity and unprecedented magnitude and scope of the disaster."
As the report notes, the workshop was just the beginning of a long, perhaps decades-long, discussion that public health officials, scientists, and community leaders will need to have to fully grapple with the health effects of the spill.
原文地址：http://www.foodsafetynews.com/2010/08/iom-issues-report-on-oil-spill-health-consequences/
日期：2010-08-12
