Revealed: air pollution may be damaging 'every organ in the body'

[nitpicker]

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/ng-interactive/2019/may/17/air-pollution-may-be-damaging-every-organ-and-cell-in-the-body-finds-global-review

Revealed: air pollution may be damaging 'every organ in the body’

Exclusive: Comprehensive analysis finds harm from head to toe, including dementia, heart and lung disease, fertility problems and reduced intelligence

Damian Carrington
Environment editor

Fri 17 May 2019 11.00 GMT

Air pollution may be damaging every organ and virtually every cell in the human body, according to a comprehensive new global review. The research shows head-to-toe harm, from heart and lung disease to diabetes and dementia, and from liver problems and bladder cancer to brittle bones and damaged skin. Fertility, foetuses and children are also affected by toxic air, the review found.

The systemic damage is the result of pollutants causing inflammation that then floods through the body and ultrafine particles being carried around the body by the bloodstream.

Air pollution is a “public health emergency”, according to the World Health Organization, with more than 90% of the global population enduring toxic outdoor air. New analysis indicates 8.8m early deaths each year – double earlier estimates – making air pollution a bigger killer than tobacco smoking. But the impact of different pollutants on many ailments remains to be established, suggesting well-known heart and lung damage is only “the tip of the iceberg”.
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The WHO has called air pollution the “silent killer” because its widespread effects are often not ascribed to toxic air.

Lungs and heart

The harmful effects of dirty air shown in the review begin when the pollution is inhaled.

This results in breathing problems, from asthma to emphysema to lung cancer. There is now overwhelming evidence that air pollution results in serious harm not only to the lungs, but also to the heart. Here it increases the risk of heart attacks as arteries narrow and muscles weaken.

One reason for the wide-ranging damage from air pollution is that very small particles can penetrate the lungs and be carried around the body. “They land in the organs directly,” Schraufnagel said.
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