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... used a group of 6, 340 Seventh Day Adventists living throughout California (62 % lived in the Basin). Results of the study suggest a relationship between long term exposure to air pollution and the development of specific chronic diseases. Residents living in areas which exceeded state and federal standards for suspended particulates on 42 days or more per year had higher risks of respiratory diseases, including a 33 % greater bronchitis risk and 74 % greater asthma risk. In addition, women living in those high particulate areas had a 37 % higher risk of developing some form of cancer. oIn 1987, Drs.
Russell Sherwin and Value Richter's of USC examined the health of 152 young people, between the ages of 15 and 25, who died suddenly from accidents or homicide. In lung autopsies of over 100 of the subjects, slight lung airspace inflammation was found in 75 % of the group, with severe damage in 27 %. In addition, all of the youths examined had some degree of airway inflammation, while 39 % had severe illness in the bronchial glands and 29 % had severe illness in their bronchial linings. Combined, about 54 % of the youths examined had at least one site of severe illness. While no evidence has been found to deter-ine the levels of smoking or other contributing factors that could have affected their health, these youths appear to have provided the first positive proof of health damage from long-term exposure to poor air quality.
oA study conducted by Dr. Roger Details of UCLA on chronic obstructive respiratory disease (CORD) looked at residents of three Southern California areas (Long Beach, Glendora and Lancaster) with different types and levels of air pollution. Participants aged 7 to 59 were questioned about lifestyle habits and examined using lung function tests and histories to record exposures to pollutants from workplaces and personal habits, such as smoking. Athletes may be relatively young, healthy, physically fit and nonsmokers, but they may be among the most vulnerable to the effects of inhaled ozone (and other environmental pollutants), according to Dr. Henry Gong of UCLA.
Endurance studies suggest that athletic performance may begin to suffer at the. 12 ppm level of ozone (the federal health standard), and is very likely at. 20 ppm for most athletes exercising heavily for one or more hours. Fine particulate pollution -- even at levels below the federal health standard -- can shorten life spans by two years, according to a 16 -year study by Harvard University researchers. In a study of 8, 111 residents of six U. S. cities, particle pollution was strongly associated with excess deaths from lung cancer and heart disease -- even when other lifestyle risks such as cigarette smoking were factored out. There have been many Environmental Protection Agency studies looking at health effects.
Some findings include: oA study of 10 adult men exposed to. 12 ppm ozone for 6. 6 hours (including five hours of moderate exercise), found that lung function decreased and respiratory symptoms (coughing and breathing discomfort) increased over the more than six hours of exposure. In a study done on rats, continuous low level exposure to ozone caused restrictive lung disease. Removal of the rats from the ozone environment to one of clean, filtered air appeared to reverse the disease state back to normal. However, the study indicated that since people do not breathe filtered air, ozone exceedances in numerous cities would appear to promote pulmonary fibrosis.
In a field study of children during normal activities at summer camp, lung function measurements were taken before, during and after ozone levels reached above. 12 ppm on four days and. 18 ppm on one day. Lung function failed to return to its pre-episode level for many days after the ozone episode had passed. An acute exposure of humans to. 40 ppm ozone initiates biochemical changes in the lung resulting in the production of components which contribute to inflammation and acute lung damage and which can lead to long term effects such as fibrosis. A study was initiated to determine if prolonged exposure to low levels of ozone would produce similar biochemical changes. Non-smoking males were randomly exposed to filtered air and either. 10 ppm or. 08 ppm of ozone for 6. 6 hours with moderate exercise. The study concluded that exposure of humans to low levels of ozone is sufficient to cause an inflammatory reaction in the lungs.
The California Air Resources Board has concluded that "since the lungs of children are not fully developed, early damage to the respiratory tract could increase the risk of respiratory disease in adult life. " Because of their physiology, children are much more likely than adults to develop smog-related lung damage. For their body size, children inhale several times more air than adults, and they breathe faster, particularly during strenuous physical activity. In addition, they spend more time outdoors than any other segment of the population according to the AQMD study. Dr.
Robert F. Phalen, Ph. D. , professor of community and environmental medicine and director of the Air Pollution Health Effects Laboratory at the University of California, Irvine, says that when children exercise, they tend to breathe through their mouths. According to Phalen, mouth-breathing bypasses the natural filtering of air pollutants by the nose and allows large volumes of polluted air to affect the more sensitive areas of children's lungs which are still developing. Studies show that children exposed to summer ozone pollution year in, year out, have a greater susceptibility to respiratory infections because chronic exposure to smog impairs their immune system. Research findings also suggest that, even if children do not show symptoms while exercising in unhealthful air, they are likely to suffer a loss in lung function compared to youngsters who grow up where the air is less polluted.
State and federal governments have set health standards for pollutants, specifying levels beyond which the air is unhealthful. California's state standards for air pollutants are more stringent than the federal government's. It is up to each individual state to determine if they want to set tougher standards. Standards are set to provide an adequate margin of safety in the protection of public health. Under the federal Clean Air Act, EPA must base standards solely on health considerations and not economics or technology.
Various levels of smog episodes are reported for the pollutant ozone. The declaration of a first, second or third stage smog alert is based on the degree of health risk. The protective actions help to reduce exposure to unhealthful levels of ozone, but those who are especially sensitive should contact their physician for more specific advice. Generally, in the event of a smog alert, outdoor activities should be scheduled for morning or early evening hours to avoid the mid-day peak when ozone levels are at their highest. My opinion on the problem is that it is a very serious problem and something should be done. The only thing is, nothing jurassic enough will be done.
People can't just all of the sudden stop using cars and humans can't just all of the sudden change their way of living. So smog and ozone levels will get worse but life will go on. Bibliography: web
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Research essay sample on State And Federal Lung Function
