SMART THINKING
Research shows the air pollution from Australia’s bushfires could be linked to health problems that show up in the future.
Air pollution from Australia’s bushfires could cause future health problems.
When bushfires caused a smoke haze to blanket Sydney and the state of NSW for days on end, organisations such as the Australasian College for Emergency Medicine and the Lung Foundation declared it a public health emergency. While places like Sarajevo, Delhi and Kabul live with hazardous levels of air pollution every day, air pollution isn’t always top of mind for people living in Australia and New Zealand. Still, air quality is an issue that affects us all. The World Health Organization (WHO) says that as the world gets hotter and more crowded, and as we continue to pump out dirty emissions, the air we breathe is growing dangerously polluted.
A recent study by the University of Manchester found air pollution is linked to detrimental effects on human health, including increased risk of heart disease and stroke.
The report states that around 11,000 UK coronary heart disease and stroke deaths each year are due to air pollution – specifically particulate matter (PM): small particles in the air that cause health problems. PM2.5 is one of the most dangerous types of PM, and the WHO says 91 per cent of the world’s population is living in places where the air quality guidelines of 10 μg/m3 are not met. On a clear summer’s day in Sydney, PM2.5 sits around 20. When the smoke clogged the city, air quality deteriorated to 310 PM2.5. Researchers of the UK study focused on a set of compounds that bind to the surface of PM, called polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) – as the amount of PAH on PM is associated with the detrimental impact air pollution has on the heart.
Studies after the 1999 Exxon Valdez oil spill showed that the ecosystem still has not recovered 20 years on. In 2010, research on fish after the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, which released large quantities of PAHs into the marine environment, showed that the heart’s ability to contract was impaired.
Dr Holly Shiels, senior author of the study, from the University of Manchester, said: “Fish exposed to PAH from oil spills can serve as indicators, providing significant insights into the human health impacts of PAHs and PM air pollution.”
Try to decrease your exposure to polluted air by limiting time outside when air quality is poor, making your home airtight, and considering an air purifier or a HEPA filter on air conditioning or heating units.