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Health Effects of Wood Smoke Exposures
Wood smoke poses risks for healthy people who are physically
active outdoors.Wood smoke contains gases and other
respiratory irritants linked to allergies, inflammation of the throat and
sinuses, or decreased lung function.
Short-term and immediate effects
Burning eyes and throat, sinusitis, bronchitis, pneumonia
Long-term effects
- Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease
Fine particulate matter is especially harmful to people with
chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), increasing their
hospital admission rates.
- Asthma
Currently, 19.2 million people (8.5 percent of adults) in the
United States report that they have asthma.24 New England states
have some of the highest asthma rates in the country.
A nonprofit, public health and medical research funding
organization, Health Resources in Action, produced a report
entitled, The Burden of Asthma in New England. The report shows
the very high and growing rates of asthma in both adults and
children in the region. Asthmatic children are particularly
sensitive to fine particulate matter and wood smoke.
- Cancer
OWFs emit a number of carcinogenic chemicals.Wood smoke
contains benzene, formaldehyde, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons
(PAHs) and dioxin. Fine particulate matter also increases the risk
of cancer. Analysis of data from an American Cancer Society cohort study found that for each 10 ug/m3 elevation in fine
particulate air pollution, the risk of lung cancer mortality
increased by 8 percent.
- Cardiovascular Disease
Mortality and hospital admissions for myocardial infarction,
congestive heart failure and cardiac arrhythmia increase
with a rise in the concentrations of particulate and gaseous
pollutants.
As concentrations of airborne particles increase, people with
cardiovascular disease may experience increasing severity of
symptoms, rates of hospitalization, and mortality.
- Carbon Monoxide Poisoning
The low-burning fires of OWFs emit larger amounts of carbon
monoxide than high-combustion fires. Carbon monoxide exposure
is not only an immediate health risk; continuous exposures,
even at low levels, can lead to neurological effects.
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