Given below are two statements, one labelled Assertion A and the other…
2023
Given below are two statements, one labelled Assertion A and the other labelled Reason R.
Assertion A: Children are much more vulnerable than adults to environmental toxins.
Reason R: For each kilogram of body weight, children drink more water, eat more food, and breathe more air than adults.
In light of the statements above, choose the most appropriate answer.
Answer: A. Both A and R are true and R is the correct explanation of A — ConceptIn environmental health, vulnerability is used broadly for the chance and severity of harm. It reflects both the dose reaching the body and biological…
- A.
Both A and R are true and R is the correct explanation of A
- B.
Both A and R are true and R is NOT the correct explanation of A
- C.
A is true but R is false
- D.
A is false but R is true
Show answer & explanation
Correct answer: A
Concept
In environmental health, vulnerability is used broadly for the chance and severity of harm. It reflects both the dose reaching the body and biological susceptibility.
When exposure is normalized by body weight, higher intake of contaminated media can increase dose per kilogram. Developing organs can add susceptibility, while higher exposure dose is itself a mechanism that raises environmental-health risk.
Application
Assertion A uses vulnerability in this broad environmental-health sense. Reason R identifies the exposure-dose component: children take in more air, water, and food per kilogram, so contaminants in those media can produce a higher dose per kilogram.
Cross-check and contrast
Treating both statements as true but unrelated overlooks that intake rate per kilogram is a determinant of contaminant dose per kilogram.
Treating R as false conflicts with pediatric exposure data reporting higher relative intake of air, water, and food.
Treating A as false conflicts with evidence that both exposure patterns and developmental biology increase environmental-health risk in children.
Therefore, both A and R are true, and R correctly explains an important reason for A.