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Vilcins D, Christofferson RC, Yoon JH, Nazli SN, Sly PD, Cormier SA, Shen G. Updates in Air Pollution: Current Research and Future Challenges. Ann Glob Health 2024; 90:9. [PMID: 38312715 PMCID: PMC10836163 DOI: 10.5334/aogh.4363] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/14/2023] [Accepted: 12/20/2023] [Indexed: 02/06/2024] Open
Abstract
Background The United Nations has declared that humans have a right to clean air. Despite this, many deaths and disability-adjusted life years are attributed to air pollution exposure each year. We face both challenges to air quality and opportunities to improve, but several areas need to be addressed with urgency. Objective This paper summarises the recent research presented at the Pacific Basin Consortium for Environment and Health Symposium and focuses on three key areas of air pollution that are important to human health and require more research. Findings and conclusion Indoor spaces are commonly places of exposure to poor air quality and are difficult to monitor and regulate. Global climate change risks worsening air quality in a bi-directional fashion. The rising use of electric vehicles may offer opportunities to improve air quality, but it also presents new challenges. Government policies and initiatives could lead to improved air and environmental justice. Several populations, such as older people and children, face increased harm from air pollution and should become priority groups for action.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dwan Vilcins
- The University of Queensland, Child Health Research Centre, South Brisbane, QLD, Australia
| | - Rebecca C. Christofferson
- Louisiana State University, School of Veterinary Medicine, Department of Pathobiological Sciences, Baton Rouge, Louisiana, USA
| | - Jin-Ho Yoon
- School of Earth Sciences and Environmental Engineering, Gwangju Institute of Science and Technology, Gwangju, 61005, Korea
| | - Siti Nurshahida Nazli
- The University of Queensland, Child Health Research Centre, South Brisbane, QLD, Australia
- Faculty of Health Sciences, Universiti Teknologi MARA Cawangan Pulau Pinang, Kampus Bertam, 13200 Kepala Batas, Pulau Pinang, Malaysia
| | - Peter D. Sly
- The University of Queensland, Child Health Research Centre, South Brisbane, QLD, Australia
| | - Stephania A. Cormier
- Department of Biological Sciences, Louisiana State University A&M College and the Pennington Biomedical Research Institute, Baton Rouge, Louisiana, 70803, USA
| | - Guofeng Shen
- College of Urban and Environmental Sciences, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China
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Sly PD, Stanley FJ. Sustainable environments for Australian children's and young people's health and wellbeing: our young's welfare is threatened. Med J Aust 2023; 219 Suppl 10:S40-S43. [PMID: 37982339 DOI: 10.5694/mja2.52133] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/21/2023] [Accepted: 08/21/2023] [Indexed: 11/21/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Peter D Sly
- Child Health Research Centre, University of Queensland, Brisbane, QLD
| | - Fiona J Stanley
- Directorate Telethon Kids Institute, Perth, WA
- University of Western Australia, Perth, WA
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Cheney AM, Ortiz G, Trinidad A, Rodriguez S, Moran A, Gonzalez A, Chavez J, Pozar M. Latinx and Indigenous Mexican Caregivers' Perspectives of the Salton Sea Environment on Children's Asthma, Respiratory Health, and Co-Presenting Health Conditions. INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH AND PUBLIC HEALTH 2023; 20:6023. [PMID: 37297627 PMCID: PMC10252982 DOI: 10.3390/ijerph20116023] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/02/2023] [Revised: 05/19/2023] [Accepted: 05/23/2023] [Indexed: 06/12/2023]
Abstract
This research investigated Latinx and Indigenous Mexican caregivers' perspectives of the Salton Sea's environment (e.g., dust concentrations and other toxins) on child health conditions. The Salton Sea is a highly saline drying lakebed located in the Inland Southern California desert borderland region and is surrounded by agricultural fields. Children of Latinx and Indigenous Mexican immigrant families are especially vulnerable to the Salton Sea's environmental impact on chronic health conditions due to their proximity to the Salton Sea and structural vulnerability. From September 2020 to February 2021, we conducted semi-structured interviews and focus groups with a total of 36 Latinx and Indigenous Mexican caregivers of children with asthma or respiratory distress living along the Salton Sea. A community investigator trained in qualitative research conducted interviews in Spanish or Purépecha, an indigenous language spoken by immigrants from Michoacán, Mexico. Template and matrix analysis was used to identify themes and patterns across interviews and focus groups. Participants characterized the Salton Sea's environment as toxic, marked by exposure to sulfuric smells, dust storms, chemicals, and fires, all of which contribute to children's chronic health conditions (e.g., respiratory illnesses such as asthma, bronchitis, and pneumonia, co-presenting with allergies and nosebleeds). The findings have important environmental public health significance for structurally vulnerable child populations in the United States and globally.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ann Marie Cheney
- Department of Social Medicine Population and Public Health, School of Medicine, University of California Riverside, Riverside, CA 92521, USA
| | - Gabriela Ortiz
- Department of Anthropology, University of California Riverside, Riverside, CA 92521, USA
| | - Ashley Trinidad
- College of Natural & Agricultural Sciences, University of California Riverside, Riverside, CA 92521, USA
| | - Sophia Rodriguez
- Department of Anthropology, University of California Riverside, Riverside, CA 92521, USA
| | - Ashley Moran
- Department of Social Medicine Population and Public Health, School of Medicine, University of California Riverside, Riverside, CA 92521, USA
| | - Andrea Gonzalez
- David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
| | - Jaír Chavez
- College of Natural & Agricultural Sciences, University of California Riverside, Riverside, CA 92521, USA
| | - María Pozar
- Conchita Servicios de la Comunidad, Mecca, CA 92254, USA
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Williams PCM, Beardsley J, Isaacs D, Preisz A, Marais BJ. The impact of climate change and biodiversity loss on the health of children: An ethical perspective. Front Public Health 2023; 10:1048317. [PMID: 36743159 PMCID: PMC9895790 DOI: 10.3389/fpubh.2022.1048317] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/19/2022] [Accepted: 12/13/2022] [Indexed: 01/22/2023] Open
Abstract
The reality of human induced climate change is no longer in doubt, but the concerted global action required to address this existential crisis remains inexcusably inert. Together with climate change, biodiversity collapse is increasingly driving the emergence and spread of infectious diseases, the consequences of which are inequitable globally. Climate change is regressive in its nature, with those least responsible for destroying planetary health at greatest risk of suffering the direct and indirect health consequences. Over half a billion of the world's children live in areas vulnerable to extreme weather events. Without immediate action, the health of today's children and future generations will be compromised. We consider the impact of biodiversity collapse on the spread of infectious diseases and outline a duty of care along a continuum of three dimensions of medical ethics. From a medical perspective, the first dimension requires doctors to serve the best interests of their individual patients. The second dimension considers the public health dimension with a focus on disease control and cost-effectiveness. The neglected third dimension considers our mutual obligation to the future health and wellbeing of children and generations to come. Given the adverse impact of our ecological footprint on current and future human health, we have a collective moral obligation to act.
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Affiliation(s)
- Phoebe C. M. Williams
- School of Public Health, Faculty of Medicine, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, Australia
- Department of Immunology and Infectious Diseases, Sydney Children's Hospital Network, Sydney, NSW, Australia
- Sydney Infectious Diseases Institute (Sydney ID), The University of Sydney, Darlington, NSW, Australia
- School of Women and Children's Health, The University of NSW School of Women's and Children's Health, Sydney, NSW, Australia
| | - Justin Beardsley
- School of Public Health, Faculty of Medicine, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, Australia
- Sydney Infectious Diseases Institute (Sydney ID), The University of Sydney, Darlington, NSW, Australia
| | - David Isaacs
- Clinical Ethics, Sydney Children's Hospital Network, Sydney, NSW, Australia
- Sydney Health Ethics, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, Australia
| | - Anne Preisz
- Clinical Ethics, Sydney Children's Hospital Network, Sydney, NSW, Australia
- Sydney Health Ethics, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, Australia
| | - Ben J. Marais
- School of Public Health, Faculty of Medicine, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, Australia
- Sydney Infectious Diseases Institute (Sydney ID), The University of Sydney, Darlington, NSW, Australia
- Clinical Ethics, Sydney Children's Hospital Network, Sydney, NSW, Australia
- Sydney Health Ethics, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, Australia
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Guo Y, Yang L, Li H, Qiu L, Wang L, Zhang L. County level study of the interaction effect of PM 2.5 and climate sustainability on mortality in China. Front Public Health 2023; 10:1036272. [PMID: 36684965 PMCID: PMC9853058 DOI: 10.3389/fpubh.2022.1036272] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/04/2022] [Accepted: 12/06/2022] [Indexed: 01/09/2023] Open
Abstract
Introduction PM2.5 and climate change are two major public health concerns, with majority of the research on their interaction focused on the synergistic effect, particularly for extreme events such as hot or cold temperatures. The climate sustainability index (CLS) was introduced to comprehensively explore the impact of climate change and the interactive effect on human health with air pollution. Methods In this study, a county-level panel data in China was collected and used. The generalized additive model (GAM) and geographically and temporally weighted regression (GTWR) was used to explore the interactive and spatial effect on mortality between CLS and PM2.5. Results and discussions Individually, when CLS is higher than 150 or lower than 50, the mortality is higher. Moreover, when PM2.5 is more than 35 μg/m3, the influence on mortality is significantly increased as PM2.5 concentration rises; when PM2.5 is above 70 μg/m3, the trend is sharp. A nonlinear antagonistic effect between CLS and PM2.5 was found in this study, proving that the combined adverse health effects of climate change and air pollution, especially when CLS was lower (below 100) and PM2.5 was higher (above 35 μg/m3), the antagonistic effect was much stronger. From a spatial perspective, the impact of CLS and PM2.5 on mortality varies in different geographical regions. A negative and positive influence of CLS and PM2.5 was found in east China, especially in the northeastern and northern regions, -which were heavily polluted. This study illustrated that climate sustainability, at certain level, could mitigate the adverse health influence of air pollution, and provided a new perspective on health risk mitigation from pollution reduction and climate adaptation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yanan Guo
- Key Laboratory of Land Surface Pattern and Simulation, Institute of Geographical Sciences and Natural Resources Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
- College of Resources and Environment, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Linsheng Yang
- Key Laboratory of Land Surface Pattern and Simulation, Institute of Geographical Sciences and Natural Resources Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
- College of Resources and Environment, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Hairong Li
- Key Laboratory of Land Surface Pattern and Simulation, Institute of Geographical Sciences and Natural Resources Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
- College of Resources and Environment, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Leijie Qiu
- Key Laboratory of Land Surface Pattern and Simulation, Institute of Geographical Sciences and Natural Resources Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Li Wang
- Key Laboratory of Land Surface Pattern and Simulation, Institute of Geographical Sciences and Natural Resources Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
- College of Resources and Environment, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Lantian Zhang
- Key Laboratory of Land Surface Pattern and Simulation, Institute of Geographical Sciences and Natural Resources Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
- College of Resources and Environment, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
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Walsh EI, Sargent G, Cevik-Compiegne B, Roberts M, Palfrey N, Gooyers-Bourke L, Vardoulakis S, Laachir K. Bushfire Smoke and Children's Health-Exploring a Communication Gap. INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH AND PUBLIC HEALTH 2022; 19:12436. [PMID: 36231731 PMCID: PMC9566720 DOI: 10.3390/ijerph191912436] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/29/2022] [Revised: 09/16/2022] [Accepted: 09/23/2022] [Indexed: 06/16/2023]
Abstract
The "Black Summer" bushfires of 2019/2020 in Australia generated smoke that persisted for over three months, mainly affecting Eastern Australia. Most communication strategies focused on the fire itself, revealing a knowledge gap in effective communication of the impact of bushfire smoke on health, especially for children and those living in non-English speaking minority groups. To address this, semi-structured qualitative interviews were undertaken with sixteen adults with caring (n = 11) or educational (n = 5) responsibilities for primary-school aged children (5-12 years, with some also having children up to 16 years) who had direct experience of the "Black Summer" bushfires. Overall, 43% (n = 7) of the sample spoke English as a first language, 25% (n = 4) spoke Turkish, with the remainder speaking Persian, Arabic, and Spanish. Thematic inductive qualitative content analysis revealed predominant themes of the role of parents and caregivers as conduits and curators of information. Air quality apps were the most common source of information. Language barriers and the lack of child-friendly methods of communication were highlighted as particular challenges. This qualitative study provides evidence for future development of communication strategies to better serve culturally and linguistically diverse individuals and the children in their care.
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Affiliation(s)
- Erin I. Walsh
- Population Health Exchange, National Centre for Epidemiology and Population Health, Australian National University, Canberra, ACT 2601, Australia
| | - Ginny Sargent
- Population Health Exchange, National Centre for Epidemiology and Population Health, Australian National University, Canberra, ACT 2601, Australia
| | - Burcu Cevik-Compiegne
- Centre for Arab and Islamic Studies, Australian National University, Canberra, ACT 2601, Australia
| | - Michelle Roberts
- Medical School, Australian National University, Canberra, ACT 2601, Australia
| | - Nicola Palfrey
- Headspace Australia, 1/1 Torrens St. Braddon, Canberra, ACT 2612, Australia
| | - Laura Gooyers-Bourke
- Australian Child and Adolescent Trauma, Loss & Grief Network, Australian National University, Canberra, ACT 2601, Australia
| | - Sotiris Vardoulakis
- Healthy Environments and Lives (HEAL) National Research Network
- National Centre for Epidemiology and Population Health, Australian National University, Canberra, ACT 2601, Australia
| | - Karima Laachir
- Centre for Arab and Islamic Studies, Australian National University, Canberra, ACT 2601, Australia
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