Options for keeping the food system within environmental limits.

The food system is a major driver of climate change, changes in land use, depletion of freshwater resources, and pollution of aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems through excessive nitrogen and phosphorus inputs. Here we show that between 2010 and 2050, as a result of expected changes in population and income levels, the environmental effects of the food system could increase by 50-90% in the absence of technological changes and dedicated mitigation measures, reaching levels that are beyond the planetary boundaries that define a safe operating space for humanity. We analyse several options for reducing the environmental effects of the food system, including dietary changes towards healthier, more plant-based diets, improvements in technologies and management, and reductions in food loss and waste. We find that no single measure is enough to keep these effects within all planetary boundaries simultaneously, and that a synergistic combination of measures will be needed to sufficiently mitigate the projected increase in environmental pressures.

Associations between poor living conditions and multi-morbidity among Syrian migrant agricultural workers in Lebanon.

BACKGROUND: Syrian migrant farmworkers are among the most marginalized populations in Lebanon, living in poverty, lacking basic legal protections and frequent targets of discrimination. These realities produce living conditions that undermine their basic health and wellbeing. This study explores associations between household living conditions and acute and chronic health problems among Syrian migrant agricultural workers in the Bekaa region of Lebanon. METHODS: A survey was carried out in summer of 2011 with a sample of 290 migrant agriculture workers and members of their household living in a migrant farmworker camp. The survey assessed participants living conditions, assets and health conditions. Regression analyses were carried out to examine associations between multi-morbidity and quality of household and neighborhood living conditions. RESULTS: The mean age for the population was 20 years. Forty-seven percent of participants reported health problems. Almost 20% reported either one acute or chronic illness, 15% reported two health problems and 13% reported three or more. The analysis showed a significant positive association between multi-morbidity and poor housing and infrastructure conditions among study participants. CONCLUSION: The situation for migrant communities in Lebanon has likely further deteriorated since the study was conducted, as hundreds of thousands of new migrants have entered Lebanon since the outbreak of the Syrian armed conflict in 2011. These findings should inspire multi-faceted community development initiatives that provide basic minimums of neighborhood infrastructure and housing quality for Syrian migrant informal settlements across Lebanon, safeguarding the health and wellbeing of community residents.

Household food security is associated with agricultural livelihoods and diet quality in a marginalized community of rural Bedouins in Lebanon.

In the context of recent increases in international food prices, it is hypothesized that in rural communities retaining food production practices is important for protection against food insecurity at both the household and community levels, as well as for protection against the development of poor nutritional outcomes. To investigate this hypothesis, a cross-sectional study of household food security and nutritional status was carried out in a rural community of settled Bedouins in Lebanon comprising 84 households with 474 individuals; this tribe's recent history of settlement in 2 locations that differ by access to land and food production practices provides the context for this study. Food insecurity was found to be highly prevalent (49%) in this Bedouin community and was negatively associated with household food production (P < 0.05) and the consumption of fruits, chicken, meat, and fish (P < 0.05) and positively associated with consumption of cereal products (P < 0.01). This study shows that in small rural communities in a transitional country, sustaining food production may protect from food insecurity. Agricultural livelihood support programs that promote continued involvement in food production at the household and community level, in conjunction with other income-generating activities, may build resilience against food insecurity and improve dietary diversity.

Effect of women's perceptions and household practices on children's waterborne illness in a low income community.

An ecosystem approach to human health was adopted in a community-based study carried out in Bebnine, an underserved town in Lebanon. The objective of the study is to examine the association between women's household practices and diarrhea among children in a setting where contaminated drinking water and intestinal diseases are common. A total of 280 women were randomly selected and interviewed using a structured questionnaire. Data were collected on 712 children between the ages of 6 and 14. The study instrument included determinants of diarrhea such as sociodemographic characteristics, water, sanitation, hygiene practices, gender variables, and behavioral risk factors. Multivariate regression analysis was employed to examine the association between water handling practices and diarrhea. The prevalence of diarrhea is 5%. Female children are more likely to suffer from diarrhea than male children (OR = 2.58; 95% CI: 1.19-5.62). Treatment of drinking water at the household level and the use of drinking water for cooking and the preparation of hot beverages are protective against diarrhea (OR = 0.15; 95% CI: 0.03-0.65). Female caretakers' behaviors such as daily bathing and seeking medical care at times of illness are protective against diarrhea in children. The findings suggest that diarrhea is a gendered health problem. Female children, who are generally more involved in household activities than male children, are at higher risk of suffering from diarrhea. Female caretakers' personal hygiene, household practices, and perceptions of diarrhea are additional risk factors. Intervention activities would be more effective if based on a better understanding of gender roles and household power relations.

Reproducibility of bacterial and copepod density assessment in bathing and artisanal fishing water of the Eastern Mediterranean.

Faecal bacteriological indicators and copepod density assessment are used to predict the environmental health of seawater for recreational bathing and artisanal fishing, respectively. The reproducibility of bacterial culture-count and copepod-microscopic density assessment after respective capturing of the sampled seawater on 0.22 microm Millipore filter and 150 microm mesh sieve copepod net, is determined. The paired t-test was performed to evaluate the reproducibility of each obtained parameter-mean in first and second simultaneous water samplings of a total of 10 sites selected along a 200 km distance, at about 500-1000 m offshore. The means of each bacterial indicator in colony forming units/100 ml of sea water in first versus (vs.) second sampling of the 10 sites, followed by the P values were: total bacterial count (6.3 x 10(2) vs. 6.2 x 10(2), P=0.958), Coliform count (3.9 x 10(2) vs. 2.6 x 10(2), P=0.212), Staphylococcus aureus (3.0 x 10(2) vs. 2.4 x 10(2), P=0.551), and Clostridium perfringens (1.4 x 10 vs. 0.4 x 10, P=0.298). However, the average copepod density in five microscopic fields at magnification of 100x in sample 1 vs. sample 2 were: (1.40 vs. 1.60 respectively, P=0.267). This sampling design along the 200 km coast, the used technique for capturing the indicators, and the quantitative laboratory assessment of the indicator densities resulted in high reproducibility with a non-significant difference between the first and second sampling within the 95% confidence limits (P>0.05), a data in support of future monitoring protocol of the environmental health of the coastal water of the Mediterranean sea.