Environmental research
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Environmental research · Jan 2015
ReviewA systematic review of the physical health impacts from non-occupational exposure to wildfire smoke.
Climate change is likely to increase the threat of wildfires, and little is known about how wildfires affect health in exposed communities. A better understanding of the impacts of the resulting air pollution has important public health implications for the present day and the future. ⋯ Exposure measurement is a key challenge in current literature on wildfire and human health. A limitation is the difficulty of estimating pollution specific to wildfires. New methods are needed to separate air pollution levels of wildfires from those from ambient sources, such as transportation. The majority of studies found that wildfire smoke was associated with increased risk of respiratory and cardiovascular diseases. Children, the elderly and those with underlying chronic diseases appear to be susceptible. More studies on mortality and cardiovascular morbidity are needed. Further exploration with new methods could help ascertain the public health impacts of wildfires under climate change and guide mitigation policies.
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Starting from early January 2013, northern China was hit by multiple prolonged and severe smog events which were characterized by extremely high-level concentrations of ambient fine particulate matter (PM2.5) with hourly peaks of PM2.5 over 800 µg/m(3). However, the consequences of this severe air pollution are largely unknown. This study investigates the acute effect of the smog episodes and PM2.5 on mortality for both urban and rural areas in northern China. ⋯ The smog episodes and PM2.5 are statistically associated with mortality in rural areas of China. The associations for urban areas are not statistically significant.
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Environmental research · Jan 2015
Cadmium exposure and atherosclerotic carotid plaques--results from the Malmö diet and Cancer study.
Epidemiological studies indicate that cadmium exposure through diet and smoking is associated with increased risk of cardiovascular disease. There are few data on the relationship between cadmium and plaques, the hallmark of underlying atherosclerotic disease. ⋯ These results extend previous studies on cadmium exposure and clinical cardiovascular events by adding data on the association between cadmium and underlying atherosclerosis in humans. The role of smoking remains unclear. It may both cause residual confounding and be a source of pro-atherogenic cadmium exposure.
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Environmental research · Nov 2014
Comparative StudyCigarettes vs. e-cigarettes: Passive exposure at home measured by means of airborne marker and biomarkers.
There is scarce evidence about passive exposure to the vapour released or exhaled from electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes) under real conditions. The aim of this study is to characterise passive exposure to nicotine from e-cigarettes' vapour and conventional cigarettes' smoke at home among non-smokers under real-use conditions. ⋯ The airborne markers were statistically higher in conventional cigarette homes than in e-cigarettes homes (5.7 times higher). However, concentrations of both biomarkers among non-smokers exposed to conventional cigarettes and e-cigarettes' vapour were statistically similar (only 2 and 1.4 times higher, respectively). The levels of airborne nicotine and cotinine concentrations in the homes with e-cigarette users were higher than control homes (differences statistically significant). Our results show that non-smokers passively exposed to e-cigarettes absorb nicotine.
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Environmental research · Oct 2014
In utero and peripubertal exposure to phthalates and BPA in relation to female sexual maturation.
The age of pubertal onset for girls has declined over past decades. Research suggests that endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs) may play a role but exposure at multiple stages of development has not been considered. We examined in utero and peripubertal exposure to bisphenol-A (BPA) and phthalates in relation to serum hormones and sexual maturation among females in a Mexico City birth cohort. ⋯ BPA was not associated with in utero or peripubertal serum hormones or sexual maturation. Our findings suggest in utero phthalate exposure may impact hormone concentrations during peripubescence and timing of sexual maturation. Efforts to control phthalate exposure during pregnancy should be of high priority.