Originally published September 27 2005
Particle pollution may be linked to early death
by Mike Adams, the Health Ranger, NaturalNews Editor
Air pollution is bigger health risk than previously though, according to a recent study that examines data on residents of the Los Angeles metropolitan area, and excessive particle pollution has been linked to disease and an 11 to 17 percent elevated risk of death.
Experts may be significantly underestimating air pollution's role in causing early death, according to a team of American and Canadian researchers, who studied two decades' worth of data on residents of the Los Angeles metro area.
When the epidemiologists examined links between particle pollution and mortality within more than 260 Los Angeles neighborhoods, they found that pollution's chronic health effects are two to three times greater than earlier believed.
"By looking at the effects of pollution within communities, not only did we observe pollution's influence on overall mortality, but we saw specific links between particulate matter and death from ischemic heart disease, such as heart attack, as well as lung cancers," Jerrett says.
This study digs more deeply, taking pollution measures at 23 sites within Los Angeles to more accurately reflect air pollution exposure where residents live and work.
Researchers examined data from 22,906 residents of Los Angeles, Riverside, San Bernardino and Ventura counties in the American Cancer Society's Cancer Prevention Study II since 1982.
The vast number of participants allowed scientists to control for dozens of factors that influence health outcome, such as smoking, diet and education.
Finally, they compiled causes of death for the 5,856 participants who died by 2000.
When considering air pollution, the epidemiologists specifically looked at levels of particulate matter, a mixture of airborne microscopic solids and liquid droplets.
"We have convincing evidence that those causes of death that we might expect from inflammation, ischemic heart disease and lung disorders, are elevated in areas of higher pollution levels," he says.
Researchers also saw more than a twofold increased risk of death from diabetes, although numbers of diabetes-related deaths were smaller than those from heart disease, making findings less reliable.
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