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California's dirty air costs more than $193M in hospital-based medical care, finds RAND study

California's dirty air caused more than $193 million in hospital-based medical care from 2005 to 2007 as people sought help for problems such as asthma and pneumonia that are triggered by elevated pollution levels, according to a new RAND Corporation study.

2 Mar 2010

Traditional gauges of economic activity overstate standard of living, say researchers

Traditional gauges of economic activity severely overstate the standard of living as experienced on 'Main Street,' say University of Maryland researchers, who have worked with their state officials to apply a more accurate and greener index.

19 Feb 2010

Infants and toddlers face increase risk from 'third-hand smoke'

Nicotine that accumulates on indoor surfaces long after a person has put out their cigarette is converted into cancer-causing chemicals, US scientists have warned.

17 Feb 2010

Air pollution linked to increased risk of atherosclerosis

Researchers at the Keck School of Medicine of the University of Southern California (USC), in collaboration with international partners in Spain and Switzerland and colleagues in California, have found that exposure to air pollution accelerates the thickening of artery walls that leads to cardiovascular disease.

15 Feb 2010

Report shows 3.4% of adult Minnesotans suffer from COPD

The nation's fourth leading cause of death, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), is now being measured by the Minnesota Department of Health's Environmental Public Health Tracking Program. The program focuses on three major causes of hospitalizations in Minnesota that can be triggered or made worse by environmental factors such as secondhand smoke or outdoor air pollution — asthma, heart attacks and COPD.

10 Feb 2010

Health hazards: Clinging tobacco smoke reacts with nitrous acid and produces dangerous carcinogens

Nicotine in third-hand smoke, the residue from tobacco smoke that clings to virtually all surfaces long after a cigarette has been extinguished, reacts with the common indoor air pollutant nitrous acid to produce dangerous carcinogens. This new potential health hazard was revealed in a multi-institutional study led by researchers with the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab).

9 Feb 2010

New study to understand the association of winter "cold-air pools" with poor air quality

At times this winter, the greater Salt Lake City area has harbored the most polluted air in the United States. Now, researchers from the University of Utah and other institutions are starting a three-year, $1.3 million study to better understand the winter weather "inversion" conditions frequently associated with poor air quality.

3 Feb 2010

SNM's Nanomedicine and Molecular Imaging Summit examines the use of nanoparticles

SNM's Nanomedicine and Molecular Imaging Summit wrapped up today in Albuquerque, N.M., with in-depth discussion-and a high sense of energy looking ahead.

3 Feb 2010

U.S. Marshals seize unapproved ozone generators from Applied Ozone Systems

At the request of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, U.S. Marshals today seized 79 ozone generators, models AOS-1M and AOS-1MD, from Applied Ozone Systems of Auburn, Calif. The seized goods, which are medical devices, are valued at $75,900.

30 Jan 2010

Findings demonstrate direct correlation between improved air quality and pediatric ear infections

A new study by researchers at UCLA and Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston suggests that improvements in air quality over the past decade have resulted in fewer cases of ear infections in children.

28 Jan 2010

Air pollution is associated with increased cardiac events

Even healthy people exposed to ultrafine particulate pollution associated with traffic and fossil-fuel combustion for just two hours show changes in heart rhythm and evidence of clot formation that may herald the potential for serious cardiac events, according to research from the Environmental Protection Agency.

23 Jan 2010

E-The Environmental Magazine: Environmental toxicity drives up autism rates

As many as one in 90 children are today being diagnosed with autism--and autism research continues to focus almost exclusively on genetics. In its January/February 2010 issue (posted now at: www.emagazine.com), E-The Environmental Magazine looks at another factor that may be driving up autism rates--environmental toxicity.

7 Jan 2010

Older adults face higher risk of hospitalization for pneumonia when exposed to pollution

Older adults with long-term exposure to higher levels of pollution are at higher risk for hospitalization for pneumonia, according to researchers in Canada.

23 Dec 2009

Prolonged exposure to higher levels of pollutants can lead to hospitalization for pneumonia

A McMaster University researcher has found the first evidence that prolonged exposure to higher levels of the pollutants found in car exhaust fumes and industrial air pollution can lead to hospitalization for pneumonia in adults aged 65 and older.

23 Dec 2009

Findings raise new hope for asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease

A new study involving data from more than 20,000 individuals has uncovered several DNA sequences linked to impaired pulmonary function. The research, an analysis that combined the results of several smaller studies, provides insight into the mechanisms involved in reaching full lung capacity.

15 Dec 2009

Several DNA sequences linked to impaired pulmonary function, uncovers new study

14 Dec 2009

Canadians’ health and well-being can be improved by adopting certain environmental health measures

The health and well-being of Canadians could be greatly improved by adopting some of the environmental health approaches taken in Australia, Sweden and California, according to a Conference Board of Canada report, Critical Steps for Canada: Environmental Health Lessons Across Borders.

8 Dec 2009

Environmental sensors may help avoid air pollution hot spots in everyday life

You want to go for a run, but you don't want to run in polluted air that might aggravate your asthma. University of California, San Diego computer scientists are creating a network of environmental sensors that will help you avoid air pollution hot spots that exist exactly when you are planning your route.

5 Dec 2009

Strategies to reduce greenhouse gases benefit human health, show new studies

Today, new studies published in the Lancet show that strategies to reduce greenhouse gases also benefit human health. The Lancet series highlights case studies on four climate change topics - household energy, transportation, electricity generation, and agricultural food production.

26 Nov 2009

Major direct health benefits by reducing carbon dioxide and other greenhouse emissions

Tackling climate change by reducing carbon dioxide and other greenhouse emissions will have major direct health benefits in addition to reducing the risk of climate change, especially in low-income countries, according to a series of six papers appearing today (Wed., Nov. 25) in the British journal The Lancet.

25 Nov 2009