• Corpus ID: 17567015

The environmental side effects of medication How are human and veterinary medicines in soils and water bodies affecting human and environmental health ?

@inproceedings{Boxall2004TheES,
  title={The environmental side effects of medication How are human and veterinary medicines in soils and water bodies affecting human and environmental health ?},
  author={Alistair B.A. Boxall},
  year={2004}
}

• A. Boxall
• Published 2004
• Biology, Medicine

Medicines have an important role in the treatment and prevention of disease in both humans and animals. But it is because of the very nature of medicines that they may also have unintended effects on animals and microorganisms in the environment. Although the side effects on human and animal health are usually investigated in thorough safety and toxicology studies, the potential environmental impacts of the manufacture and use of medicines are less well understood and have only recently become a topic of research interest. Some of the effects of various compounds—most notably anthelmintics from veterinary medicine and antibacterial therapeutics— are already known (Daughton & Ternes, 1999; Boxall et al, 2003a, 2004a; Floate et al, 2005), but there are many other substances that can affect organisms in the environment. This is further complicated by the fact that some pharmaceuticals can cast effects on bacteria and animals well below the concentrations that are usually used in safety and efficacy tests. In addition, breakdown products and the combination of different biologically active compounds may have unanticipated effects on the environment. Although it may be safe to assume that these substances do not substantially harm humans, we have only recently begun to research whether and how they affect a wide range of organisms in the environment and what this means for environmental health.