Climate change policies have stimulated a shift towards renewable energy sources such as biomass. The economic crisis of 2008 has also increased the practice of household biomass burning as it is often cheaper than using oil, gas or electricity for heating. As a result, household biomass combustion is becoming an important source of air pollutants in the European Union.This position paper discusses the contribution of biomass combustion to pollution levels in Europe, and the emerging evidence on the adverse health effects of biomass combustion products.Epidemiological studies in the developed world have documented associations between indoor and outdoor exposure to biomass combustion products and a range of adverse health effects. A conservative estimate of the current contribution of biomass smoke to premature mortality in Europe amounts to at least 40 000 deaths per year.We conclude that emissions from current biomass combustion products negatively affect respiratory and, possibly, cardiovascular health in Europe. Biomass combustion emissions, in contrast to emissions from most other sources of air pollution, are increasing. More needs to be done to further document the health effects of biomass combustion in Europe, and to reduce emissions of harmful biomass combustion products to protect public health. @ERSpublications Biomass combustion is an important source of air pollution and ill health in the EU: emissions need to reduce http://ow.ly/RYkPk
The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest with respect to their authorship or the publication of this article.C. Ethical Approval. All procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional and/or national research committee and with the 1964 Helsinki declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards. This article does not contain any studies with animals performed by any of the authors. D. Informed Consent: Informed consent was obtained from all individual participants included in each study described.
The purpose of this study was to provide current age-, sex-, and region-specific MS prevalence estimates and to identify trends using the National Health Interview Survey. The overall prevalence estimate was 85/100,000 population, or approximately 211,000 (+/-20,000) persons. A 50% increase was observed in the number of women reporting MS for 1991 through 1994 vs 1982 through 1986. The observed trend in higher numbers of self-reported MS among women is consistent with recent observations of higher prevalence and incidence.
ObjectiveTo explore the potential association between asbestos exposure and risk
of autoimmune disease, we conducted a case–control study among
a cohort of 7,307 current and former residents of Libby, Montana, a
community with historical occupational and environmental exposure to asbestos-contaminated
vermiculite.MethodsCases were defined as those who reported having one of three systemic autoimmune
diseases (SAIDs): systemic lupus erythematosus, scleroderma, or
rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Controls were randomly selected at a 3:1 ratio
from among the remaining 6,813 screening participants using frequency-matched
age and sex groupings.ResultsThe odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for SAIDs
among those ≥ 65 years of age who had worked for the vermiculite
mining company were 2.14 (95% CI, 0.90–5.10) for
all SAIDs and 3.23 (95% CI, 1.31–7.96) for RA. In this
age group, exposure to asbestos while in the military was also an independent
risk factor, resulting in a tripling in risk. Other measures
of occupational exposure to vermiculite indicated 54% and 65% increased
risk for SAIDs and RA, respectively. Those who had
reported frequent contact with vermiculite through various exposure pathways
also demonstrated elevated risk for SAIDs and RA. We found increasing
risk estimates for SAIDs with increasing numbers of reported vermiculite
exposure pathways (p < 0.001).ConclusionThese preliminary findings support the hypothesis that asbestos exposure
is associated with autoimmune disease. Refined measurements of asbestos
exposure and SAID status among this cohort will help to further clarify
the relationship between these variables.
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