One Health is an approach that recognizes that the health of people is closely connected to the health of animals and our shared environment. One Health is not new, but it has become more important in recent years. This is because many factors have changed interactions between people, animals, plants, and our environment.
Human populations are growing and expanding into new geographic areas. As a result, more people live in close contact with wild and domestic animals, both livestock and pets. Animals play an important role in our lives, whether for food, fiber, livelihoods, travel, sport, education, or companionship. Close contact with animals and their environments provides more opportunities for diseases to pass between animals and people.
The earth has experienced changes in climate and land use, such as deforestation and intensive farming practices. Disruptions in environmental conditions and habitats can provide new opportunities for diseases to pass to animals.
The movement of people, animals, and animal products has increased from international travel and trade. As a result, diseases can spread quickly across borders and around the globe.
These changes have led to the spread of existing or known (endemic) and new or emerging zoonotic diseases, which are diseases that can spread between animals and people. Every year, millions of people and animals around the world are affected by zoonotic diseases. Examples of zoonotic diseases include:Animals also share our susceptibility to some diseases and environmental hazards. Because of this, they can sometimes serve as early warning signs of potential human illness. For example, birds often die of West Nile virus before people in the same area get sick with West Nile virus infection.Antibiotic-resistant germs can quickly spread through communities, the food supply, healthcare facilities, and the environment (soil, water), making it harder to treat certain infections in animals and people.
Vector-borne diseases are on the rise with warmer temperatures and expanded mosquito and tick habitats.
Diseases in food animals can threaten supplies, livelihoods, and economies.
The human-animal bond can help improve mental well-being.
Contamination of water used for drinking, recreation, and more can make people and animals sick.
Even the fields of chronic disease, mental health, injury, occupational health, and noncommunicable diseases can benefit from a One Health approach involving collaboration across disciplines and sectors.One Health is gaining recognition in the United States and globally as an effective way to fight health issues at the human-animal-environment interface, including zoonotic diseases. CDC uses a One Health approach by involving experts in human, animal, environmental health, and other relevant disciplines and sectors in monitoring and controlling public health threats and to learn about how diseases spread among people, animals, plants, and the environment. The use of antimicrobials anywhere – such as in a hospital or on a farm – can contribute to AR, making infections in both people and animals harder to treat. Like humans, animals sometimes carry germs, including AR germs, that can make people sick. People can get sick from these germs by eating contaminated food or by touching animals and their environments. CDC has worked diligently with partners to improve how antimicrobials are used in hospitals and on farms (antimicrobial stewardship), to increase awareness of AR spread and emphasize the importance of working with veterinarians when considering using antimicrobials to care for animals.Antibiotic resistance, the ability of pathogens to defeat the drugs designed to kill them, can affect many aspects of daily life. Antibiotics save lives, but any time antibiotics are used—in people, animals, or crops—they can cause side effects and can lead to antibiotic resistance, making infections harder or impossible to treat. In August 2021, CDC sat down with international experts across One Health to discuss this critical issue and hear more about the important work happening to track antibiotic resistance in water, examine its impact on public health, and take action to address this potential threat. This conversation happened as a part of CDC’s AMR Exchange, a new global webinar series launched in May to engage a broad group of partners, practitioners, and policymakers on antibiotic resistance.
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