What's Around You Is Making You Sick: Dr. Ayanna Quamina on Environmental Medicine and Black Health
In this column, Dr. Ayanna Quamina introduces environmental medicine and explains how toxins, pollutants, plastics and targeted marketing create disproportionate health risks for Black communities, along with practical steps readers can take to reduce their exposure.
When people think about their health, they tend to focus on diet, exercise or stress. These factors matter, but they’re only part of the picture.
Environmental medicine is a branch of health care that examines how our surroundings influence our internal health and well-being. It connects symptoms and conditions to chemicals we breathe, eat, wear and apply to our skin recognizing that toxins, pollutants, heavy metals, mold, plastics and poor air quality can burden the body and contribute to chronic illness.
Environmental medicine practitioners examine how certain triggers might affect the body and how reducing them can support overall vitality. They tend to focus on areas like air and water quality, household chemicals, personal care products, and plastics and endocrine disruptors.
Environmental factors can contribute to a wide range of conditions, including autoimmune conditions, hormonal imbalance, headaches and migraines, chronic fatigue, neurological symptoms such as brain fog and memory issues, and certain cancers. Typically, a combination of multiple exposures over time, compounded by chronic stress and poor nutrition, is what leads to internal health issues.
Why this matters to the Black community
Environmental medicine is ultimately a justice and public health issue, and for many Black communities this conversation is especially urgent. Targeted marketing, industrial zoning and gaps in consumer protection have created disproportionate health risks.
Black communities are more likely to live near highways, industrial corridors, waste sites and neighborhoods with poor air quality. This means higher exposure to chemicals linked to asthma, heart disease and inflammatory illness. Toxins are found not only in the air, but also in products many in our community have used for generations without knowing the harm they may cause.
Johnson & Johnson currently faces more than 60,000 lawsuits connecting the use of its talc powder to ovarian cancer or mesothelioma. The company has denied that its products cause cancer, but multiple plaintiffs have been awarded damages and many cases continue.
Hair straightening products have recently come under scrutiny for their endocrine-disrupting chemicals and possible links to hormone-related cancers. Some synthetic braiding hair and extension products contain volatile organic compounds, flame retardants or chemical coatings. Women have reported itching, headaches or scalp irritation shortly after installation, symptoms that are often relieved once the hair is removed.
All plastics eventually break down into microscopic particles called nanoplastics, which are now being found virtually everywhere: in our water supply, food packaging, household dust, the oceans and even in human tissue. Scientists are still studying the long-term effects, but there is growing concern about their role in internal inflammation, hormone disruption and oxidative stress. While plastics affect people worldwide, communities with less access to fresh food and greater reliance on packaged goods face higher exposure through plastic packaging and disposable containers.
What you can do
Now that you have a clearer picture of how the environment can directly affect your health, here are some steps you can take.
To improve indoor air quality, avoid synthetic fragrance sprays, room deodorizers and candles. Use HEPA or charcoal-based air purifiers and open windows regularly for fresh circulation, especially if someone smokes inside.
When it comes to personal care products, read labels and purchase fragrance-free or low-toxin options whenever possible, and ask your local retailers to stock more of them. This applies to body lotion, deodorant, hair products, makeup and feminine care products. As a general rule, look for products with shorter, easily understandable ingredient lists. The longer the list and the more chemicals included, the higher the likelihood that it isn’t good for you.
For hair care, consider using relaxers less frequently or exploring other styling options. Wash new braiding hair before use, choose plant-based hair products when available and pay attention to symptoms like itching, headaches or scalp burning.
To reduce plastic exposure, use glass storage containers when possible, avoid microwaving food in plastic and use filtered water, options like Brita are accessible alternatives.
You can also support your body’s natural detox pathways by staying hydrated, eating fiber-rich foods, sweating regularly through movement and exercise, maintaining supportive sleep patterns, eating cruciferous vegetables like broccoli and cauliflower, managing stress and maintaining regular bowel movements.
Environmental medicine reminds us that health isn’t just about what happens inside your body, it’s also about what happens around it. Personal choices matter, but so does policy. Vote for local officials who stand for ingredient transparency, safer beauty standards and environmental justice. Support companies that align with your values. You have a voice and you have power.
Small shifts add up to large changes. Every label you read, every product you choose and every informed decision you make is a step toward healing for you, for your community and for generations to come.
Learn more about Dr. Ayanna Quamina and her practice at www.drayannaq.com. Email her directly at info@drayannaq.com.