November 2014

This week, in collaboration with the Friends of the NIEHS and the American Academy of Pediatrics, the ATS convened an educational briefing for congressional staff on Capitol Hill on environmental influences on child health. Briefing speakers included Linda Birnbaum, Ph.D., Director of the NIEHS, Heather Volk, Ph.D., Asst. Professor of Research at the University of Southern California and Leonardo Trasande, M.D., Assoc. Professor of Pediatrics at NYU School of Medicine. The ATS chairs the Friends of the NIEHS coalition, which convenes congressional briefings to educate Congress about NIEHS-supported research on environmental health and the need to support sustained federal research funding.

The briefing, which was hosted by Rep. David Price (D-NC), showcased NIEHS-supported scientific findings documenting the environmental influences that lead to diseases such as autism, asthma and obesity in children. Dr. Birnbaum gave an overview of NIEHS's child health programs, including the Children's Environmental Health Centers and how this science improves child health through disease prevention. Dr. Volk focused on the health effects of air pollution, specifically the links to asthma and autism and Dr. Trasande spoke about environmental exposures linked to obesity and the economic costs of this and other childhood diseases caused by chemicals and pollutants.