Environmental factor

In epidemiology, environmental factors are those determinants of disease that are not transmitted genetically. Apart from the true monogenicgenetic disorders, environmental factors may determine the development of disease in those genetically predisposed to a particular condition. Diet, tobacco smoking, exposure to toxins, sunlight, pathogensor radiationare common environmental factors that determine a large segment of non-hereditary disease.

If a disease process is concluded to be the result of a combination of geneticand environmental factor influences, it can be referred to as having a multifactorial inheritancepattern.

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It uses material from the http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Environmental+factor Wikipedia article Environmental factor.