A major new study has found a causal link between exposure to air pollution and increased chances of premature death.
New research has provided further evidence that exposure to fine air particulates causes an increased risk of premature death. The research indicates that strengthening the current air pollution standards in the United States could save the lives of 143,257 people over the next 10 years.
The United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) determines the air quality standards in the U. S. It identifies the level of a range of pollutants that local, regional, and national governments have a responsibility to adhere to.
The EPA base these levels on current scientific literature demonstrating the harmful effects of air pollution on people’s health. Since their inception in 1971, the safe level of fine particulate concentrations has steadily decreased as new research comes to light.
There is well-documented evidence linking fine particulate air pollution to health, particularly its link to cardiovascular and respiratory issues. According to the EPA, fine particulate can come directly from a range of sources, such as fires or construction sites. They can also form in the atmosphere in chemical reactions with air pollutants.
Recently, research has suggested that exposure to fine particulate air pollution concentrations below the maximum determined by the EPA can adversely affect health. However, some experts, including the chair of EPA’s Clean Air Scientific Advisory Committee, have contested these findings. They argue that there is no verifiable evidence to confirm a causal relationship between air pollution concentrations lower than the current standards and adverse effects on health.
GUT BACTERIA COULD HELP DIAGNOSE DIABETES: A study of more than 4,000 people shows that gut bacteria fluctuate throughout the day and that this occurs to a lesser extent in people with type 2 diabetes. Doctors could potentially use these patterns to predict and diagnose diabetes.
Circadian rhythms, which people sometimes refer to as the “body clock,” regulate patterns of sleep, alertness, temperature, and blood pressure, among other factors. These daily biological rhythms likely evolved to coordinate with light and food availability, but they also regulate internal metabolic processes.
Building on this, a new study shows that diabetes is also associated with changes to the daily rhythms of the gut microbiome.
