ABSTRACT
It has been said that environmental health is everything and everything is environmental health. While this adage captures the enormity of the subject and may have a resonance with those who work within the field, it does not serve as a meaningful definition. Definitions are of fundamental importance. They set out the precise scope and restrictions placed on a concept or idea. They seek to clarify and to establish a common understanding of terms. The definitions of technical terms can stem from vested interest, and in attempting to define a subject more and more closely barriers and marked sectors can develop. In this sense, the term environmental health is quite different from other definitions in that its meaning can be so wide, and in many respects it is this catch-all nature that creates unease and misunderstanding. By separating the two dimensions we can illustrate the allencompassing nature of the combined term: Albert Einstein noted that environment was ‘everything that’s not me’, and the World Health Organization (WHO) considers health to be a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being.
