UW study links auto pollution to increased health risks
Air pollution has long been known to be bad for the lungs. But new University of Washington research, involving thousands of older women in dozens of cities nationwide, shows that it also raises the risk of women dying from heart disease or stroke.
The increased risk comes from tiny airborne particles typically found in engine exhaust. And the damage they cause to arteries in the heart and brain is worse than previously believed, the study found.
"It looks like it's about three times as big as previously estimated ... That's a surprise," said Dr. Joel Kaufman, the UW professor of environmental sciences who directed the study.
The scientists found that the greater the level of the so-called "fine particulate" pollution, the greater the risk of cardiovascular disease and death. Even a relatively slight increase boosted the risk significantly.
"There is no reason to think it isn't the same for men," said Kaufman.
Kaufman said the research focused on women because there was a readily available group already enrolled in long-term health research coordinated by the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle. Data from the project, the 15-year Women's Health Initiative (WHI), have produced other important research on heart disease, breast cancer, colorectal cancer and osteoporosis.
Results from the air-pollution study are reported in this week's edition of the New England Journal of Medicine with Kristin Miller, a UW doctoral student, as the lead author. Other scientists from the UW, Hutchinson center and Harborview Medical Center co-authored the study, which was financed by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences.
Continue reading this article from the Seattle Times:
An unpleasant surprise: higher risks from pollution
