ch. 1. An introduction to soil science basics / Eric C. Brevik -- ch. 2. Soils and human health : an overview / Eric C. Brevik -- ch. 3. Soil, heavy metals, and human health / Richard Morgan -- ch. 4. Organic pollutants in soil / Lynn C. Burgess -- ch. 5. Human disease from introduced and resident soilborne pathogens / Thomas E. Loynachan -- ch. 6. Radioactive elements in soil : interactions, health risks, remediation, and monitoring / Charles E. Turick, Anna S. Knox, and Wendy W. Kuhne -- ch. 7. Soil's influence on water quality and human health / Martin F. Helmke and Russell L. Losco -- ch. 8. Geophagy : an anthropological perspective / Jacques M. Henry and F. Daniel Cring -- ch. 9. Soil minerals, organisms, and human health : medicinal uses of soils and soil materials / Monday Mbila -- ch. 10. Soils, human health, and wealth : a complicated relationship / Lee Burras, Mary Nyasimi, and Lorna Butler -- ch. 11. Human contact with plants and soils for health and well-being / Joseph R. Heckman -- ch. 12. Organic farming : impacts on soil, food, and human health / Patrick M. Carr. [et al.] -- ch. 13. Addressing soil impacts on public health : issues and recommendations / Roni A. Neff, Cheryl Carmona, and Rebecca Kanter -- ch. 14. Soils and food security / Winfried E.H. Blum and Stephen Nortcliff -- ch. 15. Soils, climate, and human adaptability : review of history in the Holocene / Miroslav Kutilek and Donald R. Nielsen -- ch. 16. Climate change, soils, and human health / Eric C. Brevik.