Overview
The Children's Environmental Health Center at Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center was established to conduct research and training aimed at reducing disease and disability in children caused by environmental hazards. The Center's goal is to promote health and prevent disease by conducting research on environmental antecedents of diseases that originate in childhood, especially residential hazards.
Rationale
Children are especially vulnerable to environmental toxicants. Until recently, children were treated as "little adults". Pediatric environmental health is emerging as a new field of training and research. Cincinnati Children's is well positioned to conduct research and training in this field, with expertise in environmental neurotoxicants (such as lead and environmental tobacco smoke), ongoing research in environmental causes of asthma, and gene-environment interactions (such as the vitamin D receptor and dopamine-associated polymorphisms and asthma). In 2001, the Center was awarded one of 12 Children's Environmental Health Centers in the United States, strengthening its position as a leader in children's environmental health research.
Research Funding
Existing research, exceeding $7 million, is funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIEHS and NHLBI), the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the National Center for Lead Safe Housing (NCLSH), and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).
Current Projects
The Center is currently conducting the following research projects:
Cincinnati Asthma Prevention Study
