Air Quality Health
The Health Effects
Have you ever walked outside on a hot summer day and felt like the air was
smothering you? Has it made your eyes water or perhaps prompted an irritating
cough?
One cause of these types of symptoms could be poor air quality. Unfortunately,
these are just some of the mild effects of air pollution, which can cover the
spectrum from eye irritation to more serious health problems, such as asthma.
Ozone, Particulate Matter, Asthma and Respiratory Ailments
Taking small steps to improve air quality can help prevent health problems
for everybody, especially people with asthma and other respiratory ailments.
- Asthma. When ozone or particulate matter levels are high,
studies suggest that more asthma attacks occur that require a doctor's attention
or additional medication. One reason for this is that ozone can make people
more sensitive to allergens, the most common triggers of asthma attacks. Also,
asthmatics are affected more severely than non-asthmatics by the reduced lung
function and irritation that ozone and particulate matter cause in the respiratory
system.1
- Other Respiratory Ailments. Ozone and particulate matter
pollution can be harmful to people with chronic lung diseases, such as emphysema
and bronchitis. Both pollutants can aggravate these conditions and reduce
the immune system's ability to fight off bacterial infections in the respiratory
system.2 Often the elderly are most likely
to experience these conditions and, therefore, are particularly vulnerable
to the effects of air pollution.
- Lung Damage. Ozone may cause permanent lung damage. When
children's developing lungs are repeatedly exposed to ozone, it may lead to
reduced lung function in adulthood. In adults, ozone exposure may accelerate
the decline in lung function that occurs as part of the natural aging process.3
Particulate Matter: Small Pollutant, Big Impact
Usually it's the little things in life that make us the happiest. With air
pollution, however, it's sometimes the littlest things that cause the most harm
and unhappiness.
Fine particulate matter is one of the most serious air pollutants: the particles
are so small that they can get right through the nasal passage, past the trachea
and into the deepest parts of the lungs. The particles also can enter the bloodstream
via the lungs.4
Particle pollution damages the body in ways similar to cigarette smoking and
can cause heart attacks, strokes and lung cancer. Hundreds of studies have found
associations between elevated particulate matter levels and premature deaths,
hospital admissions and emergency room visits and aggravation of respiratory
and cardiovascular symptoms.5
1 AIRNow. 2007. Ozone and Your Health.
http://airnow.gov/index.cfm?action=static.ozone2#2
(accessed March 16, 2007).
2 AIRNow. 2007. Ozone and Your Health.
http://airnow.gov/index.cfm?action=static.ozone2#2
(accessed March 16, 2007).
3 AIRNow. 2007. Ozone and Your Health.
http://airnow.gov/index.cfm?action=static.ozone2#2
(accessed March 16, 2007).
4 American Lung Association. 2006. State of the Air: 2006.
http://lungaction.org/reports/sota06_heffects1.html
(accessed March 16, 2007).
5 California Air Resources Board and American Lung Association of California.
2004. Recent Research Findings: Health Effects of Particulate Matter and Ozone
Air Pollution.
http://www.arb.ca.gov/research/health/fs/PM-03fs.pdf (accessed
March 16, 2007).
