Smog Harms Children's Lungs for Life, Study Finds

[papau]

http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-smog9sep09.story
Smog Harms Children's Lungs for Life, Study Finds
Eight years of research yield the most definitive evidence yet that dirty air stunts lung growth.
By Miguel Bustillo
Times Staff Writer

September 9, 2004

Despite decades of cleanup efforts that have greatly reduced smog, the amount of air pollution still found in parts of Southern California and elsewhere in the country can stunt lung growth in children, according to the most comprehensive study ever conducted on children's exposure to air pollution.

The lung damage is serious enough to lead to a lifetime of health problems and, in some cases, premature death, the research found.

Scientists have long known that smog aggravates respiratory conditions such as asthma. But until recently, they were uncertain whether the dirty air caused the problems or simply made pre-existing medical conditions worse.

The study, to be published today in the New England Journal of Medicine, provides the most definitive evidence yet that routine exposure to dirty air during childhood actually harms lung development, leading to a permanently reduced ability to breathe. Underpowered lungs are known to cause a wide range of health problems.<snip>

"We were surprised at the magnitude of the effect we witnessed," said W. James Gauderman of USC's Keck School of Medicine, one of the researchers who conducted the eight-year study. "It pushed a lot of kids beyond that critical threshold of low lung function, and that was a surprise."<snip>

[kestrel91316]

1. Gee, what a surprise.

[sam sarrha]

2. Chaney will say.'a small price to pay to keep the Stinking Rich Richer'