Air pollution worse than cocaine for triggering heart attacks, says studyResearch into 'final straw' risk factors says traffic fumes greater population-wide threat than drug because of numbers exposed
guardian.co.uk, Wednesday 23 February 2011 18.37
Air pollution is a bigger trigger of heart attacks in the population than physical exertion, alcohol and taking cocaine, a study has shown. On an individual basis, cocaine raises the risk of a heart attack 23 times, says a study published in the Lancet.
But far more people are exposed to traffic fumes and factory emissions than cocaine so air quality is a far more important population-wide threat.
Scientists looked at "final straw" risk factors for triggering heart attacks, rather than underlying causes of heart disease. The highest risk factor was traffic exposure (7.4%), followed by physical exertion (6.2%) and alcohol (5%), coffee (5%), and higher levels of small air pollutant particles known as PM10s (4.8%).
Other risk factors included negative emotions, with a PAF of 3.9%, anger (3.1%), eating a heavy meal (2.7%), positive emotions (2.4%) and sexual activity (2.2%).
Air pollution triggers 5-7% of heart attacks in the population, they say. Cocaine accounts for just 0.9% of all heart attacks.
Thursday, February 24, 2011
Wednesday, January 05, 2011
Guest posting: study clean air science online
[This is a guest posting by Kayla Tanner]
Study Clean Air Science Online
In today’s world of arguing; disagreeing and general bickering it’s nice to know of a few topics that everyone can agree upon. One of them is the need for clean air.
Many may have different views on how to approach reversing the damage already caused to the air by various sources of pollution. But everyone can definitely agree that they enjoy breathing.
How To Clean Up the Air
As with most endeavors, approaching the issue of cleaning up our air is best undertaken by first establishing a basis in education. This of course includes the gaining of ongoing knowledge and the educating of others in steps that can be taken that will insure cleaner air now and in the future.
Obviously an undertaking such as educating the entire world is a large proposition to say the least. But every venture begins with a first step. So it would be wise to consider making the first step one that involves educating yourself.
Educational Options
The most obvious of options to choose where gaining knowledge is concerned in any field is to undertake a course of self-study. In other words, you’d be wise to consider the internet, public library, local book stores and reliance upon your own common sense in order to gain knowledge on topics concerning how to clean up the air and clean air in general. However, other available options should also be considered.
Obviously enrollment at a college or university would help you enormously in the gaining of knowledge in clean air studies and the sciences attached to the subject overall. But often such educational pursuits prove impractical for many reasons.
For example, leaving home to go off to college is not usually viable for those with families, jobs and any number of life’s other obligations to be considered. And even if the college or university you choose to learn from offers the appropriate courses in clean air sciences and related fields you’re looking for on a commuter basis that does not require living arrangements on campus, they will obviously cause you to make room in your life’s schedule for physical attendance within a timetable of their choosing where traditional enrollment is involved.
There is also the issue of cost involved when considering traditional enrollment at most institutions of higher learning. The price of tuition alone is high enough to give most working people a nosebleed. Then add to that the need for housing costs and other living expenses if you choose to live on campus, and you will more than likely find the cost of such an education to be out of your reach (unless your name happens to be Kennedy, Getty or Rockefeller).
There is of course the possibility of acquiring student loans and various grants. But these seldom cover the entire tab for a college education.
More Practical Educational Options
Presently we live in a world of electronic communication that is nearly instantaneous. And this is a plus where access to education in fields such as clean air studies and related sciences are concerned. More specifically, the most practical approach for most seeking additional education involves the investigation of online schools.
Most educators believe that online schools represent the future of education, as we know it. However, there is a stigma mistakenly attached to them by many who equate such internet study to an electronic incarnation of disreputable correspondence schools of the past. But such negative thinkers couldn’t be more mistaken.
Even as you read this, most every educational institution on our planet is offering degrees that can be acquired (at least in part) via their online schools and courses of study. And such learning institutions obviously include a myriad of science schools that can help any dedicated individual further their education in the area of clean air.
Study Clean Air Science Online
In today’s world of arguing; disagreeing and general bickering it’s nice to know of a few topics that everyone can agree upon. One of them is the need for clean air.
Many may have different views on how to approach reversing the damage already caused to the air by various sources of pollution. But everyone can definitely agree that they enjoy breathing.
How To Clean Up the Air
As with most endeavors, approaching the issue of cleaning up our air is best undertaken by first establishing a basis in education. This of course includes the gaining of ongoing knowledge and the educating of others in steps that can be taken that will insure cleaner air now and in the future.
Obviously an undertaking such as educating the entire world is a large proposition to say the least. But every venture begins with a first step. So it would be wise to consider making the first step one that involves educating yourself.
Educational Options
The most obvious of options to choose where gaining knowledge is concerned in any field is to undertake a course of self-study. In other words, you’d be wise to consider the internet, public library, local book stores and reliance upon your own common sense in order to gain knowledge on topics concerning how to clean up the air and clean air in general. However, other available options should also be considered.
Obviously enrollment at a college or university would help you enormously in the gaining of knowledge in clean air studies and the sciences attached to the subject overall. But often such educational pursuits prove impractical for many reasons.
For example, leaving home to go off to college is not usually viable for those with families, jobs and any number of life’s other obligations to be considered. And even if the college or university you choose to learn from offers the appropriate courses in clean air sciences and related fields you’re looking for on a commuter basis that does not require living arrangements on campus, they will obviously cause you to make room in your life’s schedule for physical attendance within a timetable of their choosing where traditional enrollment is involved.
There is also the issue of cost involved when considering traditional enrollment at most institutions of higher learning. The price of tuition alone is high enough to give most working people a nosebleed. Then add to that the need for housing costs and other living expenses if you choose to live on campus, and you will more than likely find the cost of such an education to be out of your reach (unless your name happens to be Kennedy, Getty or Rockefeller).
There is of course the possibility of acquiring student loans and various grants. But these seldom cover the entire tab for a college education.
More Practical Educational Options
Presently we live in a world of electronic communication that is nearly instantaneous. And this is a plus where access to education in fields such as clean air studies and related sciences are concerned. More specifically, the most practical approach for most seeking additional education involves the investigation of online schools.
Most educators believe that online schools represent the future of education, as we know it. However, there is a stigma mistakenly attached to them by many who equate such internet study to an electronic incarnation of disreputable correspondence schools of the past. But such negative thinkers couldn’t be more mistaken.
Even as you read this, most every educational institution on our planet is offering degrees that can be acquired (at least in part) via their online schools and courses of study. And such learning institutions obviously include a myriad of science schools that can help any dedicated individual further their education in the area of clean air.
Friday, December 03, 2010
Wednesday, December 01, 2010
Startling new report on mercury and birds
Published online 1 December 2010 | Nature | doi:10.1038/news.2010.641
News
Mercury causes homosexuality in male ibises
Environmental pollutant radically changes birds' mating behaviour.
More a:
http://www.nature.com/news/2010/101201/full/news.2010.641.html
News
Mercury causes homosexuality in male ibises
Environmental pollutant radically changes birds' mating behaviour.
More a:
http://www.nature.com/news/2010/101201/full/news.2010.641.html
Air pollution, eye changes and disease
Public release date: 30-Nov-2010
Contact: Katie Hickling
press@plos.org
44-122-344-2815
Public Library of Science
Air pollution is associated with eye vessel changes indicative of cardiovascular disease
It is known that fine particle air pollution is associated with an increased risk of cardiovascular disease; a study by Sara Adar, and colleagues (University of Washington/University of Michigan), published in this week's PLoS Medicine, takes this association further by showing that older people living in areas with long-term air pollution, or even exposed to short term pollution, are more likely to have narrowing of their retinal arterioles — microvascular changes associated with an increased risk of cardiovascular disease.
The authors took digital retinal photographs of participants in the Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis—which includes people aged 45 years of various ethnic backgrounds who had no cardiovascular disease symptoms when they enrolled in the study—to measure the diameter of retinal blood vessels. The authors modeled the long-term outdoor concentration of fine particle pollution at each participant's house for the 2-year period preceding the retinal examination; outdoor measurements taken the day before the examination provided data on short-term fine particle pollution levels. Of the 4,607 participants for whom complete data was available, retinal arteriolar diameters were narrowed among those who lived in regions with increased levels of long- and short-term fine particle pollution. In addition, increased retinal venular diameters were weakly associated with long-term (but not short-term) high concentrations of fine particle pollution.
The authors conclude: ''Residing in regions with higher air pollution concentrations and experiencing daily increases in air pollution were each associated with narrower retinal arteriolar diameters in older individuals.'' They continue: "These findings support the hypothesis that important vascular phenomena are associated with small increases in short-term or long-term air pollution exposures, even at current exposure levels, and further corroborate reported associations between air pollution and the development and exacerbation of clinical cardiovascular disease."
###
Citation: Adar SD, Klein R, Klein BEK, Szpiro AA, Cotch MF, et al. (2010) Air Pollution and the Microvasculature: A Cross-Sectional Assessment of In Vivo Retinal Images in the Population-Based Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis (MESA). PLoS Med 7(11): e1000372. doi:10.1371/journal.pmed.1000372
Full article available online at:
http://www.plosmedicine.org/article/info%3Adoi%2F10.1371%2Fjournal.pmed.1000
Contact: Katie Hickling
press@plos.org
44-122-344-2815
Public Library of Science
Air pollution is associated with eye vessel changes indicative of cardiovascular disease
It is known that fine particle air pollution is associated with an increased risk of cardiovascular disease; a study by Sara Adar, and colleagues (University of Washington/University of Michigan), published in this week's PLoS Medicine, takes this association further by showing that older people living in areas with long-term air pollution, or even exposed to short term pollution, are more likely to have narrowing of their retinal arterioles — microvascular changes associated with an increased risk of cardiovascular disease.
The authors took digital retinal photographs of participants in the Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis—which includes people aged 45 years of various ethnic backgrounds who had no cardiovascular disease symptoms when they enrolled in the study—to measure the diameter of retinal blood vessels. The authors modeled the long-term outdoor concentration of fine particle pollution at each participant's house for the 2-year period preceding the retinal examination; outdoor measurements taken the day before the examination provided data on short-term fine particle pollution levels. Of the 4,607 participants for whom complete data was available, retinal arteriolar diameters were narrowed among those who lived in regions with increased levels of long- and short-term fine particle pollution. In addition, increased retinal venular diameters were weakly associated with long-term (but not short-term) high concentrations of fine particle pollution.
The authors conclude: ''Residing in regions with higher air pollution concentrations and experiencing daily increases in air pollution were each associated with narrower retinal arteriolar diameters in older individuals.'' They continue: "These findings support the hypothesis that important vascular phenomena are associated with small increases in short-term or long-term air pollution exposures, even at current exposure levels, and further corroborate reported associations between air pollution and the development and exacerbation of clinical cardiovascular disease."
###
Citation: Adar SD, Klein R, Klein BEK, Szpiro AA, Cotch MF, et al. (2010) Air Pollution and the Microvasculature: A Cross-Sectional Assessment of In Vivo Retinal Images in the Population-Based Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis (MESA). PLoS Med 7(11): e1000372. doi:10.1371/journal.pmed.1000372
Full article available online at:
http://www.plosmedicine.org/article/info%3Adoi%2F10.1371%2Fjournal.pmed.1000
Wednesday, September 09, 2009
How Air Pollution Can Damage the Heart
from Time Magazine
Sitting in traffic can certainly be infuriating enough to raise your blood pressure. But new research shows that traffic can raise your blood pressure and put your heart at risk in a more direct way — by exposing you to the pollution in exhaust fumes...
The new findings, published in the journal Hypertension, offers a potentially new understanding of how pollutants can affect the heart.
More at http://www.time.com/time/health/article/0,8599,1921080,00.html
Sitting in traffic can certainly be infuriating enough to raise your blood pressure. But new research shows that traffic can raise your blood pressure and put your heart at risk in a more direct way — by exposing you to the pollution in exhaust fumes...
The new findings, published in the journal Hypertension, offers a potentially new understanding of how pollutants can affect the heart.
More at http://www.time.com/time/health/article/0,8599,1921080,00.html
Friday, May 01, 2009
New federal study: traffic pollution kills people with respiratory problems
There’s a new study in the current issue of Environmental Health Perspectives (published by a branch of the federal Department of Health and Human Services) which is perhaps worth a gander. See link below.
Basically, scientists found increased death among people with respiratory disease who were exposed to traffic-related nitrogen dioxide pollution in Toronto.
This is further evidence that current air quality standards for this pollutant need to be made tougher. The current standard was set in 1971 (!)
The US EPA reported last year that exposure to nitrogen dioxide – even at levels below current standards – increased the risk of hospital admissions.
The agency is under a court order to review the current national air standards for nitrogen dioxide and propose its results by June 26.
http://www.ehponline.org/docs/2009/11533/abstract.html
Basically, scientists found increased death among people with respiratory disease who were exposed to traffic-related nitrogen dioxide pollution in Toronto.
This is further evidence that current air quality standards for this pollutant need to be made tougher. The current standard was set in 1971 (!)
The US EPA reported last year that exposure to nitrogen dioxide – even at levels below current standards – increased the risk of hospital admissions.
The agency is under a court order to review the current national air standards for nitrogen dioxide and propose its results by June 26.
http://www.ehponline.org/docs/2009/11533/abstract.html
Thursday, April 30, 2009
The Journal Nature: Time Running Out to Deal With Global Warming
The world must burn less than one-quarter of its remaining fossil fuel reserves if it is to avoid dangerous climate change, according to new research.
Two studies published today in the journal Nature warn that the world must limit its total carbon dioxide emissions to about 1 trillion tons by 2050 to have the best chance at holding temperature rise below 2 degrees Celsius.
That's the target identified by some scientists and many governments that believe warming beyond that point could greatly increase the chance of catastrophic -- and in some cases, irreversible -- changes in the world's climate.
The bottom line is simple, said Myles Allen of Oxford University, the lead author of one of the new studies. "Every ton [of carbon dioxide] you release now is a ton you won't be able to release in 50 years' time," he said. "The longer we postpone emissions reductions, the harder we make the task when the time comes around."
To stay under that 1 trillion ton limit, governments would have to sharply reduce their greenhouse gas emissions from current levels. Malte Meinshausen, lead author of one study, said the world's total CO2 emissions could reach 1 trillion tons in just 20 years.
If no climate policies are implemented (red), global warming will cross 2 degrees Celsius by the middle of the century. Strong action to mitigate emissions (blue) would limit the risk of exceeding 2 degrees to 25 percent. Graph courtesy of M. Meinshausen.
"We've already emitted a third of that in the past nine years, from 2000 to 2009," explained Meinshausen, a professor at the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research in Germany.
And Meinshausen's study suggests the true "carbon dioxide budget" could be even lower if the warming effects of other greenhouse gases, such as methane, are taken into account.
But even achieving the limit recommended by the new studies isn't a guarantee that the world will avoid serious climate change, experts said.
More at:
http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v458/n7242/full/4581077a.html
Two studies published today in the journal Nature warn that the world must limit its total carbon dioxide emissions to about 1 trillion tons by 2050 to have the best chance at holding temperature rise below 2 degrees Celsius.
That's the target identified by some scientists and many governments that believe warming beyond that point could greatly increase the chance of catastrophic -- and in some cases, irreversible -- changes in the world's climate.
The bottom line is simple, said Myles Allen of Oxford University, the lead author of one of the new studies. "Every ton [of carbon dioxide] you release now is a ton you won't be able to release in 50 years' time," he said. "The longer we postpone emissions reductions, the harder we make the task when the time comes around."
To stay under that 1 trillion ton limit, governments would have to sharply reduce their greenhouse gas emissions from current levels. Malte Meinshausen, lead author of one study, said the world's total CO2 emissions could reach 1 trillion tons in just 20 years.
If no climate policies are implemented (red), global warming will cross 2 degrees Celsius by the middle of the century. Strong action to mitigate emissions (blue) would limit the risk of exceeding 2 degrees to 25 percent. Graph courtesy of M. Meinshausen.
"We've already emitted a third of that in the past nine years, from 2000 to 2009," explained Meinshausen, a professor at the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research in Germany.
And Meinshausen's study suggests the true "carbon dioxide budget" could be even lower if the warming effects of other greenhouse gases, such as methane, are taken into account.
But even achieving the limit recommended by the new studies isn't a guarantee that the world will avoid serious climate change, experts said.
More at:
http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v458/n7242/full/4581077a.html
Wednesday, October 08, 2008
A foetus suffers from a mother's bad air
8th October 2008
Babies exposed to air pollution in the womb have to breathe faster to get more oxygen in their lungs, according to research confirmed that air pollution can damage a child's lungs before birth.
more at:
http://www.thewest.com.au/aapstory.aspx?StoryName=520582
Babies exposed to air pollution in the womb have to breathe faster to get more oxygen in their lungs, according to research confirmed that air pollution can damage a child's lungs before birth.
more at:
http://www.thewest.com.au/aapstory.aspx?StoryName=520582
Tuesday, May 13, 2008
Air pollution linked to blood clots
Long-term exposure to a type of air pollution, the air-borne fine particles, appears to dramatically increase the risk of deep vein thrombosis, a condition that can lead to a life-threatening pulmonary embolism, according to a study in the May 12 issue of the Archives of Internal Medicine.
More at http://foodconsumer.org/7777/8888/M_edicare_54/051309452008_Air_pollution_linked_to_blood_clots.shtml
More at http://foodconsumer.org/7777/8888/M_edicare_54/051309452008_Air_pollution_linked_to_blood_clots.shtml
Friday, April 18, 2008
Smog steals flower fragrance
A very interesting study this week on how ozone, or smog, or harming the fragrance of flowers -- and inhibiting the ability of pollinating insects to follow the scent trail to their source.
More at http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080410170413.htm
More at http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080410170413.htm
Tuesday, January 29, 2008
Outdoor smog hurts workers inside buildings
Berkeley Lab Scientists Find Evidence of Link Between Outdoor Ozone and Building-Related Health Symptoms
BERKELEY, CA — A team of researchers at the U.S. Department of Energy’s Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) has found evidence that the prevalence of building-related symptoms (BRS) increases with increasing outdoor concentrations of the pollutant ozone. They have also discovered that the type of air filter that some buildings use in their ventilation systems may also play a role in the prevalence of BRS.
More at
http://www.lbl.gov/Science-Articles/Archive/EETD-BRS.html
Sunday, October 21, 2007
Kids and dirty air
Researchers from UC Davis have found a closer link between bronchitis in infants and some gases and particles in air pollution, findings that bolster efforts in the Sacramento region to control emissions from vehicles and wood-burning stoves.
In one of the first studies to look at air pollution and infants, researchers said last week they found young lungs more vulnerable to little-studied components in air pollution called polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, or PAHs. Such contaminants get into the air from coal burning, vehicle exhaust, wood-burning stoves and tobacco smoke, and from grilling food.
"Our work suggests that regulators consider efforts to curb PAHs as well," lead researcher Irva Hertz-Picciotto said in a statement.
More from the Sacramento Bee at http://www.sacbee.com/101/story/445116.html
In one of the first studies to look at air pollution and infants, researchers said last week they found young lungs more vulnerable to little-studied components in air pollution called polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, or PAHs. Such contaminants get into the air from coal burning, vehicle exhaust, wood-burning stoves and tobacco smoke, and from grilling food.
"Our work suggests that regulators consider efforts to curb PAHs as well," lead researcher Irva Hertz-Picciotto said in a statement.
More from the Sacramento Bee at http://www.sacbee.com/101/story/445116.html
Wednesday, October 10, 2007
Global warming: it's not just the heat -- it's the humidity!
By SETH BORENSTEIN, AP Science Writer
WASHINGTON - With global warming, the world isn‘t just getting hotter — it‘s getting stickier, due to humidity. And people are to blame, according to a study based on computer models published Thursday.
"This humidity change is an important contribution to heat stress in humans as a result of global warming," said Nathan Gillett of the University of East Anglia in the United Kingdom, a co-author of the study.
Humidity increased over most of the globe, including the eastern United States, said study co-author Katharine Willett, a climate researcher at Yale University. However, a few regions, including the U.S. West, South Africa and parts of Australia were drier.
To show that this is man-made, Gillett ran computer models to simulate past climate conditions and studied what would happen to humidity if there were no man-made greenhouse gases. It didn‘t match reality.
Gillett‘s study followed another last month that used the same technique to show that moisture above the world‘s oceans increased and that it bore the "fingerprint" of being caused by man-made global warming.
"This story does now fit together; there are now no loose ends," said Ben Santer, a scientist at Lawrence Livermore National Lab and author of the September study on moisture above the oceans. "The message is pretty compelling that natural causes alone just can‘t cut it."
It will only feel worse in the future, Gillett said.
WASHINGTON - With global warming, the world isn‘t just getting hotter — it‘s getting stickier, due to humidity. And people are to blame, according to a study based on computer models published Thursday.
"This humidity change is an important contribution to heat stress in humans as a result of global warming," said Nathan Gillett of the University of East Anglia in the United Kingdom, a co-author of the study.
Humidity increased over most of the globe, including the eastern United States, said study co-author Katharine Willett, a climate researcher at Yale University. However, a few regions, including the U.S. West, South Africa and parts of Australia were drier.
To show that this is man-made, Gillett ran computer models to simulate past climate conditions and studied what would happen to humidity if there were no man-made greenhouse gases. It didn‘t match reality.
Gillett‘s study followed another last month that used the same technique to show that moisture above the world‘s oceans increased and that it bore the "fingerprint" of being caused by man-made global warming.
"This story does now fit together; there are now no loose ends," said Ben Santer, a scientist at Lawrence Livermore National Lab and author of the September study on moisture above the oceans. "The message is pretty compelling that natural causes alone just can‘t cut it."
It will only feel worse in the future, Gillett said.
Thursday, July 26, 2007
Diesel pollution linked to heart disease
from today's Los Angeles Times:
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-heart26jul26,1,5279648.story?coll=la-headlines-california&ctrack=2&cset=true
Pollution-cholesterol link to heart disease seen The combination activates genes that can cause clogged arteries, UCLA researchers say.
By Marla Cone, Times Staff Writer
July 26, 2007
Strengthening the link between air pollution and cardiovascular disease, new research suggests that people with high cholesterol are especially vulnerable to heart disease when they are exposed to diesel exhaust and other ultra-fine particles that are common pollutants in urban air.
Microscopic particles in diesel exhaust combine with cholesterol to activate genes that trigger hardening of the arteries, according to a study by UCLA scientists to be published today.
The full study is at
http://genomebiology.com/2007/8/7/R149
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-heart26jul26,1,5279648.story?coll=la-headlines-california&ctrack=2&cset=true
Pollution-cholesterol link to heart disease seen The combination activates genes that can cause clogged arteries, UCLA researchers say.
By Marla Cone, Times Staff Writer
July 26, 2007
Strengthening the link between air pollution and cardiovascular disease, new research suggests that people with high cholesterol are especially vulnerable to heart disease when they are exposed to diesel exhaust and other ultra-fine particles that are common pollutants in urban air.
Microscopic particles in diesel exhaust combine with cholesterol to activate genes that trigger hardening of the arteries, according to a study by UCLA scientists to be published today.
The full study is at
http://genomebiology.com/2007/8/7/R149
Thursday, June 28, 2007
Smog worse for women than men?
Study: Ozone affects females more than men
HERSHEY, Pa., June 27 (UPI) -- A Penn State University College of Medicine study suggests air pollution has a more significant effect on the immune systems of females than of males.
Researchers studied mice exposed to ozone and then infected with pneumonia. Significantly more females than males died from the infection.
"If we could extrapolate what we found to the human population, it would mean women with lung infections may be at higher risk for negative outcomes if they are exposed to high amounts of air pollution, and in particular, ozone," said Professor Joanna Floros.
In the study, mice were exposed for three hours either to filtered air or to air with high levels of ozone. They then were infected with a pneumonia bacteria and monitored for two weeks.
The findings, among other things, showed mice exposed to ozone before infection died more often than did mice that had breathed only filtered air. And ozone exposure significantly decreased the likelihood of surviving pneumonia exposure for the female mice compared with males.
more at
http://www.sciencedaily.com/upi/index.php?feed=Science&article=UPI-1-20070627-14250700-bc-us-ozone.xml
HERSHEY, Pa., June 27 (UPI) -- A Penn State University College of Medicine study suggests air pollution has a more significant effect on the immune systems of females than of males.
Researchers studied mice exposed to ozone and then infected with pneumonia. Significantly more females than males died from the infection.
"If we could extrapolate what we found to the human population, it would mean women with lung infections may be at higher risk for negative outcomes if they are exposed to high amounts of air pollution, and in particular, ozone," said Professor Joanna Floros.
In the study, mice were exposed for three hours either to filtered air or to air with high levels of ozone. They then were infected with a pneumonia bacteria and monitored for two weeks.
The findings, among other things, showed mice exposed to ozone before infection died more often than did mice that had breathed only filtered air. And ozone exposure significantly decreased the likelihood of surviving pneumonia exposure for the female mice compared with males.
more at
http://www.sciencedaily.com/upi/index.php?feed=Science&article=UPI-1-20070627-14250700-bc-us-ozone.xml
Wednesday, May 16, 2007
Large Antarctic Area Has Melted
from the New York Times:
While much of the world has warmed in a pattern that scientists have linked with near certainty to human activities, the frigid interior of Antarctica has resisted the trend.
NASA’s QuikScat satellite detected extensive areas of snowmelt, shown in yellow and red, in west Antarctica in January 2005.
Now, a new satellite analysis shows that at least once in the last several years, masses of unusually warm air pushed to within 310 miles of the South Pole and remained long enough to melt surface snow across a California-size expanse.
The warm spell, which occurred over one week in 2005, was detected by scientists from the Jet Propulsion Laboratory of NASA and the University of Colorado, Boulder...
It is too soon to know whether the warm spell was a fluke or a portent.
While much of the world has warmed in a pattern that scientists have linked with near certainty to human activities, the frigid interior of Antarctica has resisted the trend.
NASA’s QuikScat satellite detected extensive areas of snowmelt, shown in yellow and red, in west Antarctica in January 2005.
Now, a new satellite analysis shows that at least once in the last several years, masses of unusually warm air pushed to within 310 miles of the South Pole and remained long enough to melt surface snow across a California-size expanse.
The warm spell, which occurred over one week in 2005, was detected by scientists from the Jet Propulsion Laboratory of NASA and the University of Colorado, Boulder...
It is too soon to know whether the warm spell was a fluke or a portent.
Monday, April 30, 2007
More bad climate news: artic ice retreating more rapidly
Arctic Ice Retreating More Quickly Than Computer Models Project
April 30, 2007
BOULDER
Arctic sea ice is melting at a significantly faster rate than projected by even the most advanced computer models, a new study concludes. The research, by scientists at the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) and the University of Colorado's National Snow and Ice Data Center (NSIDC), shows that the Arctic's ice cover is retreating more rapidly than estimated by any of the 18 computer models used by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) in preparing its 2007 assessments.http://www.ucar.edu/news/releases/2007/seaice.shtml
April 30, 2007
BOULDER
Arctic sea ice is melting at a significantly faster rate than projected by even the most advanced computer models, a new study concludes. The research, by scientists at the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) and the University of Colorado's National Snow and Ice Data Center (NSIDC), shows that the Arctic's ice cover is retreating more rapidly than estimated by any of the 18 computer models used by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) in preparing its 2007 assessments.http://www.ucar.edu/news/releases/2007/seaice.shtml
Friday, April 06, 2007
Thursday, April 05, 2007
Medical experts urge tougher smog standards
April 4, 2007
The Honorable Stephen L. Johnson
Administrator
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
1200 Pennsylvania Ave., N.W.
Washington, D.C. 20460
Re: Broad Scientific Consensus to Lower Ozone Air Quality Standard and Close the Rounding Loophole
Dear Administrator Johnson:
We, the undersigned scientists, doctors, and public health professionals, are writing to express strong support for a revised primary eight-hour ozone ambient air quality standard at a level that reduces the health burden experienced by the nation's population as the result of exposure to ozone air pollution. The National Ambient Air Quality Standards must accurately reflect the state of the science and fulfill the Clean Air Act's mandate of protecting the public health, including those most vulnerable to the effects of air pollution, with an adequate margin of safety.
We note that the EPA's panel of expert science advisors, the Clean Air Scientific Advisory Committee (CASAC), has reviewed the scientific evidence in the EPA Criteria Document and Staff Paper and has unanimously recommended that "the primary 8-hr NAAQS needs to be substantially reduced to protect human health, particularly in sensitive subpopulations" (CASAC letter to Administrator Johnson, dated October 24, 2006). We also agree with their unanimous conclusion that “there is no scientific justification for retaining the current primary 8-hour NAAQS.” Expert opinion, including recommendations by EPA staff scientists in the final Staff Paper, holds that retaining the current standard would put large numbers of people at risk for respiratory effects, asthma exacerbations, emergency room visits, hospital admissions, and mortality.
The Clean Air Scientific Advisory Committee has further recommended that EPA close the “rounding loophole” which allows areas with concentrations up to 0.085 ppm to escape regulation under the current standard of 0.08 ppm, a position that we fully endorse.
The Clean Air Scientific Advisory Committee has further unanimously recommended an eight-hour primary ozone standard in the range of 0.060 ppm to 0.070 ppm. The Committee specifically expressed its recommendation to the third decimal place to avoid the rounding loophole. This recommendation was unanimously reconfirmed in a March 5, 2007 meeting of the Committee.
Such strongly worded consensus statements are unusual for this panel of scientists, which is deliberately selected to represent a variety of viewpoints. These unambiguous, unanimous recommendations to your office reflect the strong body of scientific literature indicating significant harm to adults and children from exposures to ozone at and below the current standard of 0.08 ppm (effectively 0.085 due to rounding).
Controlled human exposure studies of healthy adults have repeatedly demonstrated reduced lung function, increased respiratory symptoms, changes in airway responsiveness, and increased airway inflammation following 6.6 hour exposures to 0.08 ppm ozone. Recent studies demonstrate that some of the people tested experience these adverse effects at concentrations of 0.06 ppm and below. Multiple field studies have shown adverse health effects of ozone exposures below 0.08 ppm on children, especially worsening of respiratory status in asthmatics. In addition, a series of recently published meta-analyses and primary national-scale epidemiological studies have documented consistent associations between premature mortality and ozone exposures below the current eight hour standard of 0.08 ppm.
In conclusion, we strongly and solemnly request that you follow the recommendations of the Clean Air Scientific Advisory Committee and reduce the eight-hour primary ozone standard to a range between 0.060 and 0.070 ppm.
Thank you for considering our views.
Sincerely,
Jonathan I. Levy, Sc.D.
Associate Professor of Environmental Health and Risk Assessment
Harvard School of Public Health
Kent Pinkerton, Ph.D.
Director of the Center for Health and the Environment
University of California at Davis
William Rom, M.D., M.P.H.
Sol and Judith Bergstein Professor of Medicine and Environmental Medicine
Director of the Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine
New York University School of Medicine
Additional signatories
Jerrold L. Abraham, M.D.
Professor of Pathology
Director of Environmental and Occupational Pathology
SUNY Upstate Medical University
Joseph Adams, M.D., F.A.C.P.
Greater Baltimore Medical Center
Towson, Maryland
Robert Aris, M.D.
Associate Professor of Medicine
Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Ed Avol, M.S.Department of Preventive MedicineUniversity of Southern California
John M. Balbus, M.D., M.P.H.
Health Program Director
Environmental Defense
Adjunct Associate Professor
Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
Rebecca Bascom, M.D., M.P.H.
Professor of Medicine
Penn State University, College of Medicine
William S. Beckett, M.D., M.P.H.
Professor of Environmental Medicine and Medicine
University of Rochester School of Medicine
Kenneth A. Berkowitz, M.D., F.C.C.P.
Associate Professor of Medicine
New York University Medical Center
Jonathan A. Bernstein, M.D., F.A.A.A.A.I.
Professor of Clinical Medicine
Division of Immunology/Allergy
University of Cincinnati
Kent J. Bransford, M.D.
Monterey Bay Oncology
Monterey, California
Katherine L. Bright, M.D.
Associate Professor of Pediatrics
University of Kentucky
Arezoo Campbell, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor of Pharmaceutical Sciences
Western University of Health Sciences
Lung Chi Chen, M.D.
Associate Professor
Department of Environmental Medicine
New York University School of Medicine
David Chong, M.D.
Associate Professor of Medicine
New York University School of Medicine
David C Christiani, M.D., M.P.H.
Professor of Medicine
Harvard Medical School
Professor of Occupational Medicine and Epidemiology
Harvard School of Public Health
Devra Davis, Ph.D., M.P.H.
Professor of EpidemiologyDirector of the Center for Environmental Oncology
University of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute
Dorr G. Dearborn, Ph.D., M.D.
Professor of Pediatrics
Chairman of the Department of Environmental Health Sciences
Case Western Reserve University
George L. Delclos, M.D., M.P.H.
Director of the Division of Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences
University of Texas
Ralph J. Delfino, M.D., Ph.D.
Epidemiology Division
University of California at Irvine
Anthony J. DeLucia, Ph.D.
Professor of Surgery
Adjunct Professor of Environmental Health
East Tennessee State University
Richard D. Dey, Ph.D.
Professor and Chair of the Department of Neurobiology and Anatomy
Director of the Center for Respiratory Biology and Lung Disease
West Virginia University
Jefferson H. Dickey, M.D.
Bodkhe Dickey Health Associates
Franklin Medical Center
Greenfield, Massachusetts
Douglas W. Dockery, Sc.D.
Professor of Environmental Epidemiology
Chair of the Department of Environmental Health
Harvard School of Public Health
Lisa Doggett, M.D., M.P.H.
Austin, Texas
Martin Donohoe, M.D., F.A.C.P.
Lecturer in the Department of Community Health
Portland State University
Harold J. Farber, M.D.
Specialist of Pediatric Pulmonology and Medical Director of the Pediatric Asthma Care Management Program at Kaiser Permanente
Vallejo, California
Karl Fields, M.D.
Professor of Family Medicine
University of North Carolina
Jonathan M. Fine, M.D.
Research Associate Professor
New York University School of Medicine
Henry Jay Forman, Ph.D.
Professor and Founding FacultySchool of Natural Sciences
University of California, Merced
Mark W. Frampton, M.D.
Professor of Medicine and Environmental Medicine
University of Rochester Medical Center
Erica Frank, M.D., M.P.H.
Professor of the Department of Health Care and Epidemiology
University of British Columbia
Michael Friedman, M.D.
Chennai, India
George Friedman-Jiménez, M.D.
Director, Bellevue/NYU Occupational and Environmental Medicine Clinic
New York University School of Medicine
John R. Froines, Ph.D.
Professor of Occupational and Environmental Health
University of California at Los Angeles
Frank Gilliland, M.D., Ph.D.
Professor in the Department of Preventive Medicine
Keck School of Medicine
University of Southern California
Lynn Goldman, M.D., M.P.H.
Professor of Environmental Health Sciences
Johns Hopkins University
Bob Gould, M.D.
Associate Pathologist at Kaiser Hospital
San Jose, California
Roni Grad, M.D.
Associate Professor of Pediatrics
University of Alabama at Birmingham
Tee L. Guidotti, M.D., M.P.H.
Chair of the Department of Environmental and Occupational Health
Director of the Division of Occupational Medicine and Toxicology (Dept. of Medicine)
The George Washington University Medical Center
David C. Hall, M.D.
Specialist in Child and Adolescent Psychiatry
Seattle, Washington
Winifred J. Hamilton, Ph.D., S.M.
Assistant Professor in the Departments of Medicine and Neurosurgery
Baylor College of Medicine
S. Katharine Hammond, Ph.D., C.I.H.
Professor and Chair of Environmental Health Sciences
University of California at Berkeley
Michael R. Harbut, M.D., M.P.H., F.C.C.P.
Clinical Assistant Professor of Medicine
Wayne State University School of Medicine
Ira Helfand, M.D.
Specialist in Emergency Care
Leeds, Massachusetts
Howard Hu, M.D., M.P.H., Sc.D.
Chair and Professor of Environmental Health Sciences
University of Michigan
Kazuhiko Ito, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor of Environmental Medicine
New York University School of Medicine
Dan Jaffe, Ph.D.
Professor of Environmental Science
University of Washington-Bothell
Sarah Jordan, M.D., M.S.P.H.
Specialist in Family Care Medicine at the Siler City Community Health Center
Piedmont Health Services, Inc.
Siler City, North Carolina
Patrick L. Kinney, Sc.D.
Associate Professor
Department of Environmental Health Sciences
Mailman School of Public Health at Columbia University
Howard M. Kipen, M.D., M.P.H.
Professor of Environmental and Occupational Medicine
Chief of the Clinical Research and Occupational Medicine Division
University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey
Jane Q. Koenig, Ph.D.
Professor of Environmental Health
University of Washington
Dana L. Kornfeld, M.D.
Clinical Associate Professor of Pediatrics
George Washington University Medical Center
Ana Krieger, M.D., F.C.C.P.
Assistant Professor
New York University School of Medicine
Nino Kuenzli, M.D., Ph.D.Associate Professor
Department of Preventative Medicine
University of Southern California Center for Research in Environmental Epidemiology
Barcelona, Spain
Francine Laden, Sc.D.
Assistant Professor of Environmental Epidemiology
Harvard University
William Lambert, Ph.D.
Associate Professor
Department of Public Health and Preventive Medicine
Oregon Health and Science University
Joyce C. Lashof, M.D.
Professor Emerita of Public Health
University of California at Berkeley
Robert S. Lawrence, M.D.
Professor of Environmental Health Sciences and Health Policy
Director of the Center for a Livable Future
Johns Hopkins University
Eric Leibert, M.D.Clinical Assistant Professor of Medicine New York University School of Medicine
George Leikauf, Ph. D.
Professor of Environmental Health and Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine
University of Cincinnati
Deborah Leiner, M.D., F.A.A.P.
Clinical Associate Professor of Pediatrics
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Chair of the North Carolina Pediatric Society Environmental Health Group
Greensboro, North Carolina
Louis S. Libby, M.D.
Specialist in Pulmonology and Chief Medical Officer at the Oregon Clinic
Portland, Oregon
Michael Lipsett, M.D., J.D.
Associate Clinical Professor
Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics
University of California, San Francisco
Alan H. Lockwood, M.D.
Professor of Neurology and Nuclear Medicine
Adjunct Professor of Communicative Disorders and Sciences
State University of New York at Buffalo
Frank Martiniuk, PhD
Research Associate Professor
New York University School of Medicine
Rob S. McConnell, M.D.
Professor of Preventive Medicine
Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California
Siobhan McNally, M.D., F.A.A.P.
Specialist in Pediatrics
Pittsfield, Massachusetts
Co-chair of the Massachusetts Section of the American Academy of Pediatrics Committee on Environmental Health
Peter H. Michelson, M.D.
Department of Pediatrics
Division of Pulmonary and Sleep Medicine
Duke University
Jana Milford, Ph.D., J.D.
Associate Professor of Mechanical Engineering
University of Colorado at Boulder
Albert Miller, M.D.
Professor of Medicine
New York Medical College
Director of Pulmonary Medicine
Caritas Health Care
Jamaica, NY
Shelly L. Miller, Ph.D.
Associate Professor
Environmental Engineering Program in the Department of Mechanical Engineering
University of Colorado at Boulder
John S. Munger, M.D.
Assistant Professor of Medicine and Cell Biology
New York University School of Medicine
Bonnie A. New, M.D., M.P.H.
Beacon Medical Management for Industry
Coordinator of Health Professionals for Clean Air
Houston, Texas
Anna Nolan, M.D.
Assistant Professor of Medicine
Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care
New York University School of Medicine
George T. O’Connor, M.D., M.S.
Professor of Medicine
Boston University School of Medicine
Marie S. O’Neill, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor of Epidemiology and Environmental Health
University of Michigan
Peter Orris, M.D., M.P.H.
Professor and Director, Occupational Health Services Institute
University of Illinois School of Public Health
Cindy L. Parker, M.D., M.P.H.
Instructor in the Department of Environmental Health Sciences
Johns Hopkins University
Jerome A. Paulson, M.D., F.A.A.P.
Associate Professor of Pediatrics and Public Health
Co-Director of the Mid-Atlantic Center for Children's Health and the Environment
George Washington University
Jennifer L. Peel, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor of Epidemiology
Department of Environmental and Radiological Health Sciences
Colorado State University
Arnold C.G. Platzker, M.D.
Professor of Pediatrics
Division of Pediatric Pulmonology
University of Southern California
Jenny E. Pompilio, M.D.
Practitioner of Internal Medicine
Hillsboro, Oregon
Joan Reibman, M.D.
Associate Professor of Medicine and Environmental Medicine
New York University
Don Richardson, M.D.
Brevard, North Carolina
Beate Ritz, M.D., Ph.D.
Professor of Epidemiology, Environmental Health Sciences, and Neurology
Vice Chair of the Department of Epidemiology
University of California at Los Angeles
Jonathan Samet, M.D., M.S.
Professor and Chair of Epidemiology
Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
Brian S. Schwartz, M.D., M.S.
Professor of Environmental Health Sciences, Epidemiology, and Medicine
Johns Hopkins University
Joel Schwartz, Ph.D.
Professor of Environmental Epidemiology
Harvard University
Katherine M. Shea, M.D., M.P.H.
Adjunct Professor of Maternal and Child Health
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Dean Sheppard, M.D.
Professor of Medicine
Director of the Lung Biology Center
University of California at San Francisco
Carl M. Shy, M.D.
Professor Emeritus of Epidemiology
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Constantinos Sioutas, Sc.D.
Professor in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering
Co-director of the Southern California Particle Center
University of Southern California
John D. Spengler, Ph.D.
Akira Yamaguchi Professor of Environmental Health and Human Habitation
Harvard University
Helen Suh, S.B., M.S., Sc.D.
Associate Professor of Environmental Chemistry and Exposure Assessment
Harvard University
Tim K. Takaro, M.D., M.P.H., M.S.
Associate Professor
Faculty of Health Sciences
Simon Fraser University
Duncan C. Thomas, Ph.D.
Director of the Biostatistics Division
Department of Preventive Medicine
University of Southern California
Catherine Thomasson, M.D.
Practitioner of Internal Medicine
Center for Student Health and Counseling
Portland State University
George D. Thurston, Sc.D.
Associate Professor of Environmental Medicine
New York University
Doris Tse, Ph.D.
Associate Professor of Medicine
New York University School of Medicine
Arthur Upton, Ph.D.
Professor of Environmental and Community Medicine
Rutgers University
Judith A. Voynow, M.D.
Associate Professor of Pediatrics
Division of Pediatric Pulmonary Medicine
Duke University
Bailus Walker Jr., Ph.D, M.P.H.
Professor of Environmental and Occupational Medicine and Toxicology
Howard University
Virginia M. Weaver, M.D., M.P.H.
Associate Professor
Division of Occupational and Environmental Health
Johns Hopkins University
Ronald H. White, M.S.T.
Associate Scientist
Department of Epidemiology
Deputy Director of the Risk Sciences and Public Policy Institute
Johns Hopkins University
Michelle Wilhelm, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor In Residence
Department of Epidemiology
University of California at Los Angeles
Peter Wilk, M.D.
Specialist in Psychiatry
Sebago, Maine
Antonella Zanobetti, Ph.D.
Research Scientist
Department of Environmental Health
Harvard University
Junfeng (Jim) Zhang, Ph.D.
Professor and Acting Chairman
Department of Environmental and Occupational Health
University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey
The Honorable Stephen L. Johnson
Administrator
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
1200 Pennsylvania Ave., N.W.
Washington, D.C. 20460
Re: Broad Scientific Consensus to Lower Ozone Air Quality Standard and Close the Rounding Loophole
Dear Administrator Johnson:
We, the undersigned scientists, doctors, and public health professionals, are writing to express strong support for a revised primary eight-hour ozone ambient air quality standard at a level that reduces the health burden experienced by the nation's population as the result of exposure to ozone air pollution. The National Ambient Air Quality Standards must accurately reflect the state of the science and fulfill the Clean Air Act's mandate of protecting the public health, including those most vulnerable to the effects of air pollution, with an adequate margin of safety.
We note that the EPA's panel of expert science advisors, the Clean Air Scientific Advisory Committee (CASAC), has reviewed the scientific evidence in the EPA Criteria Document and Staff Paper and has unanimously recommended that "the primary 8-hr NAAQS needs to be substantially reduced to protect human health, particularly in sensitive subpopulations" (CASAC letter to Administrator Johnson, dated October 24, 2006). We also agree with their unanimous conclusion that “there is no scientific justification for retaining the current primary 8-hour NAAQS.” Expert opinion, including recommendations by EPA staff scientists in the final Staff Paper, holds that retaining the current standard would put large numbers of people at risk for respiratory effects, asthma exacerbations, emergency room visits, hospital admissions, and mortality.
The Clean Air Scientific Advisory Committee has further recommended that EPA close the “rounding loophole” which allows areas with concentrations up to 0.085 ppm to escape regulation under the current standard of 0.08 ppm, a position that we fully endorse.
The Clean Air Scientific Advisory Committee has further unanimously recommended an eight-hour primary ozone standard in the range of 0.060 ppm to 0.070 ppm. The Committee specifically expressed its recommendation to the third decimal place to avoid the rounding loophole. This recommendation was unanimously reconfirmed in a March 5, 2007 meeting of the Committee.
Such strongly worded consensus statements are unusual for this panel of scientists, which is deliberately selected to represent a variety of viewpoints. These unambiguous, unanimous recommendations to your office reflect the strong body of scientific literature indicating significant harm to adults and children from exposures to ozone at and below the current standard of 0.08 ppm (effectively 0.085 due to rounding).
Controlled human exposure studies of healthy adults have repeatedly demonstrated reduced lung function, increased respiratory symptoms, changes in airway responsiveness, and increased airway inflammation following 6.6 hour exposures to 0.08 ppm ozone. Recent studies demonstrate that some of the people tested experience these adverse effects at concentrations of 0.06 ppm and below. Multiple field studies have shown adverse health effects of ozone exposures below 0.08 ppm on children, especially worsening of respiratory status in asthmatics. In addition, a series of recently published meta-analyses and primary national-scale epidemiological studies have documented consistent associations between premature mortality and ozone exposures below the current eight hour standard of 0.08 ppm.
In conclusion, we strongly and solemnly request that you follow the recommendations of the Clean Air Scientific Advisory Committee and reduce the eight-hour primary ozone standard to a range between 0.060 and 0.070 ppm.
Thank you for considering our views.
Sincerely,
Jonathan I. Levy, Sc.D.
Associate Professor of Environmental Health and Risk Assessment
Harvard School of Public Health
Kent Pinkerton, Ph.D.
Director of the Center for Health and the Environment
University of California at Davis
William Rom, M.D., M.P.H.
Sol and Judith Bergstein Professor of Medicine and Environmental Medicine
Director of the Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine
New York University School of Medicine
Additional signatories
Jerrold L. Abraham, M.D.
Professor of Pathology
Director of Environmental and Occupational Pathology
SUNY Upstate Medical University
Joseph Adams, M.D., F.A.C.P.
Greater Baltimore Medical Center
Towson, Maryland
Robert Aris, M.D.
Associate Professor of Medicine
Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Ed Avol, M.S.Department of Preventive MedicineUniversity of Southern California
John M. Balbus, M.D., M.P.H.
Health Program Director
Environmental Defense
Adjunct Associate Professor
Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
Rebecca Bascom, M.D., M.P.H.
Professor of Medicine
Penn State University, College of Medicine
William S. Beckett, M.D., M.P.H.
Professor of Environmental Medicine and Medicine
University of Rochester School of Medicine
Kenneth A. Berkowitz, M.D., F.C.C.P.
Associate Professor of Medicine
New York University Medical Center
Jonathan A. Bernstein, M.D., F.A.A.A.A.I.
Professor of Clinical Medicine
Division of Immunology/Allergy
University of Cincinnati
Kent J. Bransford, M.D.
Monterey Bay Oncology
Monterey, California
Katherine L. Bright, M.D.
Associate Professor of Pediatrics
University of Kentucky
Arezoo Campbell, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor of Pharmaceutical Sciences
Western University of Health Sciences
Lung Chi Chen, M.D.
Associate Professor
Department of Environmental Medicine
New York University School of Medicine
David Chong, M.D.
Associate Professor of Medicine
New York University School of Medicine
David C Christiani, M.D., M.P.H.
Professor of Medicine
Harvard Medical School
Professor of Occupational Medicine and Epidemiology
Harvard School of Public Health
Devra Davis, Ph.D., M.P.H.
Professor of EpidemiologyDirector of the Center for Environmental Oncology
University of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute
Dorr G. Dearborn, Ph.D., M.D.
Professor of Pediatrics
Chairman of the Department of Environmental Health Sciences
Case Western Reserve University
George L. Delclos, M.D., M.P.H.
Director of the Division of Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences
University of Texas
Ralph J. Delfino, M.D., Ph.D.
Epidemiology Division
University of California at Irvine
Anthony J. DeLucia, Ph.D.
Professor of Surgery
Adjunct Professor of Environmental Health
East Tennessee State University
Richard D. Dey, Ph.D.
Professor and Chair of the Department of Neurobiology and Anatomy
Director of the Center for Respiratory Biology and Lung Disease
West Virginia University
Jefferson H. Dickey, M.D.
Bodkhe Dickey Health Associates
Franklin Medical Center
Greenfield, Massachusetts
Douglas W. Dockery, Sc.D.
Professor of Environmental Epidemiology
Chair of the Department of Environmental Health
Harvard School of Public Health
Lisa Doggett, M.D., M.P.H.
Austin, Texas
Martin Donohoe, M.D., F.A.C.P.
Lecturer in the Department of Community Health
Portland State University
Harold J. Farber, M.D.
Specialist of Pediatric Pulmonology and Medical Director of the Pediatric Asthma Care Management Program at Kaiser Permanente
Vallejo, California
Karl Fields, M.D.
Professor of Family Medicine
University of North Carolina
Jonathan M. Fine, M.D.
Research Associate Professor
New York University School of Medicine
Henry Jay Forman, Ph.D.
Professor and Founding FacultySchool of Natural Sciences
University of California, Merced
Mark W. Frampton, M.D.
Professor of Medicine and Environmental Medicine
University of Rochester Medical Center
Erica Frank, M.D., M.P.H.
Professor of the Department of Health Care and Epidemiology
University of British Columbia
Michael Friedman, M.D.
Chennai, India
George Friedman-Jiménez, M.D.
Director, Bellevue/NYU Occupational and Environmental Medicine Clinic
New York University School of Medicine
John R. Froines, Ph.D.
Professor of Occupational and Environmental Health
University of California at Los Angeles
Frank Gilliland, M.D., Ph.D.
Professor in the Department of Preventive Medicine
Keck School of Medicine
University of Southern California
Lynn Goldman, M.D., M.P.H.
Professor of Environmental Health Sciences
Johns Hopkins University
Bob Gould, M.D.
Associate Pathologist at Kaiser Hospital
San Jose, California
Roni Grad, M.D.
Associate Professor of Pediatrics
University of Alabama at Birmingham
Tee L. Guidotti, M.D., M.P.H.
Chair of the Department of Environmental and Occupational Health
Director of the Division of Occupational Medicine and Toxicology (Dept. of Medicine)
The George Washington University Medical Center
David C. Hall, M.D.
Specialist in Child and Adolescent Psychiatry
Seattle, Washington
Winifred J. Hamilton, Ph.D., S.M.
Assistant Professor in the Departments of Medicine and Neurosurgery
Baylor College of Medicine
S. Katharine Hammond, Ph.D., C.I.H.
Professor and Chair of Environmental Health Sciences
University of California at Berkeley
Michael R. Harbut, M.D., M.P.H., F.C.C.P.
Clinical Assistant Professor of Medicine
Wayne State University School of Medicine
Ira Helfand, M.D.
Specialist in Emergency Care
Leeds, Massachusetts
Howard Hu, M.D., M.P.H., Sc.D.
Chair and Professor of Environmental Health Sciences
University of Michigan
Kazuhiko Ito, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor of Environmental Medicine
New York University School of Medicine
Dan Jaffe, Ph.D.
Professor of Environmental Science
University of Washington-Bothell
Sarah Jordan, M.D., M.S.P.H.
Specialist in Family Care Medicine at the Siler City Community Health Center
Piedmont Health Services, Inc.
Siler City, North Carolina
Patrick L. Kinney, Sc.D.
Associate Professor
Department of Environmental Health Sciences
Mailman School of Public Health at Columbia University
Howard M. Kipen, M.D., M.P.H.
Professor of Environmental and Occupational Medicine
Chief of the Clinical Research and Occupational Medicine Division
University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey
Jane Q. Koenig, Ph.D.
Professor of Environmental Health
University of Washington
Dana L. Kornfeld, M.D.
Clinical Associate Professor of Pediatrics
George Washington University Medical Center
Ana Krieger, M.D., F.C.C.P.
Assistant Professor
New York University School of Medicine
Nino Kuenzli, M.D., Ph.D.Associate Professor
Department of Preventative Medicine
University of Southern California Center for Research in Environmental Epidemiology
Barcelona, Spain
Francine Laden, Sc.D.
Assistant Professor of Environmental Epidemiology
Harvard University
William Lambert, Ph.D.
Associate Professor
Department of Public Health and Preventive Medicine
Oregon Health and Science University
Joyce C. Lashof, M.D.
Professor Emerita of Public Health
University of California at Berkeley
Robert S. Lawrence, M.D.
Professor of Environmental Health Sciences and Health Policy
Director of the Center for a Livable Future
Johns Hopkins University
Eric Leibert, M.D.Clinical Assistant Professor of Medicine New York University School of Medicine
George Leikauf, Ph. D.
Professor of Environmental Health and Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine
University of Cincinnati
Deborah Leiner, M.D., F.A.A.P.
Clinical Associate Professor of Pediatrics
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Chair of the North Carolina Pediatric Society Environmental Health Group
Greensboro, North Carolina
Louis S. Libby, M.D.
Specialist in Pulmonology and Chief Medical Officer at the Oregon Clinic
Portland, Oregon
Michael Lipsett, M.D., J.D.
Associate Clinical Professor
Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics
University of California, San Francisco
Alan H. Lockwood, M.D.
Professor of Neurology and Nuclear Medicine
Adjunct Professor of Communicative Disorders and Sciences
State University of New York at Buffalo
Frank Martiniuk, PhD
Research Associate Professor
New York University School of Medicine
Rob S. McConnell, M.D.
Professor of Preventive Medicine
Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California
Siobhan McNally, M.D., F.A.A.P.
Specialist in Pediatrics
Pittsfield, Massachusetts
Co-chair of the Massachusetts Section of the American Academy of Pediatrics Committee on Environmental Health
Peter H. Michelson, M.D.
Department of Pediatrics
Division of Pulmonary and Sleep Medicine
Duke University
Jana Milford, Ph.D., J.D.
Associate Professor of Mechanical Engineering
University of Colorado at Boulder
Albert Miller, M.D.
Professor of Medicine
New York Medical College
Director of Pulmonary Medicine
Caritas Health Care
Jamaica, NY
Shelly L. Miller, Ph.D.
Associate Professor
Environmental Engineering Program in the Department of Mechanical Engineering
University of Colorado at Boulder
John S. Munger, M.D.
Assistant Professor of Medicine and Cell Biology
New York University School of Medicine
Bonnie A. New, M.D., M.P.H.
Beacon Medical Management for Industry
Coordinator of Health Professionals for Clean Air
Houston, Texas
Anna Nolan, M.D.
Assistant Professor of Medicine
Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care
New York University School of Medicine
George T. O’Connor, M.D., M.S.
Professor of Medicine
Boston University School of Medicine
Marie S. O’Neill, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor of Epidemiology and Environmental Health
University of Michigan
Peter Orris, M.D., M.P.H.
Professor and Director, Occupational Health Services Institute
University of Illinois School of Public Health
Cindy L. Parker, M.D., M.P.H.
Instructor in the Department of Environmental Health Sciences
Johns Hopkins University
Jerome A. Paulson, M.D., F.A.A.P.
Associate Professor of Pediatrics and Public Health
Co-Director of the Mid-Atlantic Center for Children's Health and the Environment
George Washington University
Jennifer L. Peel, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor of Epidemiology
Department of Environmental and Radiological Health Sciences
Colorado State University
Arnold C.G. Platzker, M.D.
Professor of Pediatrics
Division of Pediatric Pulmonology
University of Southern California
Jenny E. Pompilio, M.D.
Practitioner of Internal Medicine
Hillsboro, Oregon
Joan Reibman, M.D.
Associate Professor of Medicine and Environmental Medicine
New York University
Don Richardson, M.D.
Brevard, North Carolina
Beate Ritz, M.D., Ph.D.
Professor of Epidemiology, Environmental Health Sciences, and Neurology
Vice Chair of the Department of Epidemiology
University of California at Los Angeles
Jonathan Samet, M.D., M.S.
Professor and Chair of Epidemiology
Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
Brian S. Schwartz, M.D., M.S.
Professor of Environmental Health Sciences, Epidemiology, and Medicine
Johns Hopkins University
Joel Schwartz, Ph.D.
Professor of Environmental Epidemiology
Harvard University
Katherine M. Shea, M.D., M.P.H.
Adjunct Professor of Maternal and Child Health
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Dean Sheppard, M.D.
Professor of Medicine
Director of the Lung Biology Center
University of California at San Francisco
Carl M. Shy, M.D.
Professor Emeritus of Epidemiology
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Constantinos Sioutas, Sc.D.
Professor in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering
Co-director of the Southern California Particle Center
University of Southern California
John D. Spengler, Ph.D.
Akira Yamaguchi Professor of Environmental Health and Human Habitation
Harvard University
Helen Suh, S.B., M.S., Sc.D.
Associate Professor of Environmental Chemistry and Exposure Assessment
Harvard University
Tim K. Takaro, M.D., M.P.H., M.S.
Associate Professor
Faculty of Health Sciences
Simon Fraser University
Duncan C. Thomas, Ph.D.
Director of the Biostatistics Division
Department of Preventive Medicine
University of Southern California
Catherine Thomasson, M.D.
Practitioner of Internal Medicine
Center for Student Health and Counseling
Portland State University
George D. Thurston, Sc.D.
Associate Professor of Environmental Medicine
New York University
Doris Tse, Ph.D.
Associate Professor of Medicine
New York University School of Medicine
Arthur Upton, Ph.D.
Professor of Environmental and Community Medicine
Rutgers University
Judith A. Voynow, M.D.
Associate Professor of Pediatrics
Division of Pediatric Pulmonary Medicine
Duke University
Bailus Walker Jr., Ph.D, M.P.H.
Professor of Environmental and Occupational Medicine and Toxicology
Howard University
Virginia M. Weaver, M.D., M.P.H.
Associate Professor
Division of Occupational and Environmental Health
Johns Hopkins University
Ronald H. White, M.S.T.
Associate Scientist
Department of Epidemiology
Deputy Director of the Risk Sciences and Public Policy Institute
Johns Hopkins University
Michelle Wilhelm, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor In Residence
Department of Epidemiology
University of California at Los Angeles
Peter Wilk, M.D.
Specialist in Psychiatry
Sebago, Maine
Antonella Zanobetti, Ph.D.
Research Scientist
Department of Environmental Health
Harvard University
Junfeng (Jim) Zhang, Ph.D.
Professor and Acting Chairman
Department of Environmental and Occupational Health
University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey
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