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https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/article/2024/jul/31/wildfire-smoke-health-dangers-explained>
"As dozens of wildfires rage across the US and Canada, blackening the skies
once again this summer, scientists are revealing even more about how dangerous
wildfire smoke is for our health.
Some of the worst fires – including the Durkee fire in Oregon, the Park fire in
California and the Jasper fire in Alberta, Canada – have sent smoke billowing
for hundreds of miles around them, blanketing cities like Boise and Calgary
with poor-quality air.
Wildfire smoke is known to be toxic to the body, but just how toxic is starting
to come into focus as new studies emerge. Just this week, a decade-long study
involving more than 1 million people in southern California found that exposure
to wildfire smoke significantly increases the risk of being diagnosed with
dementia by 21%, versus other types of air pollution such as from motor
vehicles or factories.
Another recent study, also conducted in California, attributed more than 50,000
premature deaths to wildfire smoke exposure. Smoky skies have been linked to
spikes in hospital admissions and ambulance calls for conditions such as
asthma, and for people who have cardiovascular issues, the risk of cardiac
arrests rises 70% during days with heavy smoke.
Those are just a few examples of how wildfire smoke is dangerous to health. The
more research is done, the more we are learning about how different parts of
the human body are impacted, says Dr Lisa Patel, a pediatrician and executive
director at the Medical Society Consortium on Climate and Health. “We’ve long
been concerned,” she says, “but people don’t fully understand this threat,
because it’s a new one.”"
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
