Environmental health: The most neglected part of one health

One health concept and perspective have gained momentum in the past few years in the global health sector. Keeping in view the increased popularity of “one health” American Veterinary & Medical Association has defined it as the emerging interdisciplinary field that inherently collaborates human, animal, and environmental aspects to combat emerging global health problems especially related to zoonotic public health emergencies. According to key findings of “One Health Networks (OHNs),” environmental factor is the most neglected part of one health triad that consists of the human-animal-environment interface. Currently, human and animal health has been constantly threatened by the rise of novel challenges like antimicrobial resistance, environmental pollution, epizootics, pandemics, development of multifactorial chronic ailments, etc which need interdisciplinary and intersectoral expertise. Ecosystem health and its adverse effects on human and animal health have gained the greatest attention over recent years as it serves as a melting pot for all infectious diseases. Despite achieving global success in the field of “One health” it is still in the embryonic stage in our country. So, the success of one health requires breaking down the shackles that still separate human and veterinary medicine from environmental, evolutionary, and ecological sciences that will ultimately lead to desired equilibrium and dynamics in maintaining healthy ecosystems.