PRESS-NEWS.org - Press Release Distribution
PRESS RELEASES DISTRIBUTION

Experts call for cleaner air to tackle invisible killer

10 principles for clean air released ahead of review of air quality legislation

2012-03-01
(Press-News.org) Urgent action is needed to reduce the high concentrations of dangerous air pollutants in Europe, according to experts writing in the European Respiratory Journal today (1 March 2012).

The European Respiratory Society's Environment and Health Committee are urging policymakers in Europe to introduce changes that will ensure the air that we breathe is safe and clean.

The call to action comes ahead of the upcoming review of air quality legislation in the European Union (EU) before the 2013 Year of Air. In the editorial, the ERS committee argues that any new legislation must strive to ultimately bring air pollution levels in Europe down to the already adopted World Health Organization (WHO) limits and international commitments made by EU leaders.

As guidance for public health policy, Prof. Dr. Bert Brunekreef, from Utrecht University in the Netherlands, and colleagues have devised '10 principles for clean air.' These principles include:

The need to significantly reduce concentrations of fine particles and ozone – the most health-threatening of all air pollutants

The current limit values for major air pollutants in Europe offer little protection from the damage that can be caused to a person's health. The limit values for particles far exceed the WHO advice and do not match the standards adopted by other countries.

Reducing the damage caused by living close to or attending schools near busy roads

Policy makers should consider enacting further legislation with the aim to reduce or eliminate ultrafine particle and other toxic emissions from motor vehicles. Ultrafine particles and black carbon should also be considered as possible indicators for further studies and research.

The need for more awareness of high temperatures and air pollutants that act in synergy to produce more serious health effects than heat or pollution alone.

Heat waves and high summer temperatures produce higher ozone concentrations which will lead to increased burden of disease and premature deaths, particularly in the elderly or patients with chronic respiratory diseases.

Enhance the key message that outdoor air pollution is one of the biggest environmental health threats in Europe today

An analysis carried out by the WHO estimated that current exposure to particulate matter leads to an average loss of 8.6 months of life expectancy in Europe.

Professor Brunekreef said: "The upcoming review of EU air policies is an important opportunity for policy makers to take substantial steps needed to reduce the high concentrations of dangerous air pollutants such as fine particles and ozone. We hope that the European Respiratory Society's 10 principles for clean air will guide policy makers to take the right and necessary measures to strengthen current EU limit values and safeguard public health. Many benefits would be realised including increased life expectancy, increased productivity, and improved health for all."

INFORMATION:

END



ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

Skin infection sheds light on immune cells living in our skin

2012-03-01
BOSTON, MA—Very recently, researchers discovered an important population of immune cells called memory T cells living in parts of the body that are in contact with the environment (e.g., skin, lung, GI tract). How these "resident" memory T cells are generated was unknown, and their importance with regard to how our immune system remembers infection and how it prevents against re-infection is being studied intensively. Now, a study by a Brigham and Women's Hospital (BWH) research team led by Xiaodong Jiang, PhD, research scientist and Thomas S. Kupper, MD, Chair of ...

Measuring blood flow to monitor sickle cell disease

2012-03-01
(Cambridge, Mass.) -- More than 60 years ago, scientists discovered the underlying cause of sickle cell disease: People with the disorder produce crescent-shaped red blood cells that clog capillaries instead of flowing smoothly, like ordinary, disc-shaped red blood cells do. This can cause severe pain, major organ damage and a significantly shortened lifespan. Researchers later found that the disease results from a single mutation in the hemoglobin protein, and realized that the sickle shape — seen more often in people from tropical climates — is actually an evolutionary ...

'Miracle tree' substance produces clean drinking water inexpensively and sustainably

2012-03-01
WASHINGTON, Feb. 29, 2012 — The latest episode in the American Chemical Society's (ACS) award-winning "Global Challenges/Chemistry Solutions" podcast series describes how the seeds of the "miracle tree" can be used to produce clean drinking water. The new water-treatment process requiring only tree seeds and sand could purify and clarify water inexpensively and sustainably in the developing world, where more than 1 billion people lack access to clean drinking water, scientists report. Removing the disease-causing microbes and sediment from drinking water requires technology ...

Plug 'leaks,' create 'cradle to career' education system to meet world challenges: Top US educator

2012-03-01
Plugging major "leaks" of students exiting formal education prematurely is a top priority in all countries -- developed and developing alike -- to successfully address a suite of problems confronting humanity in decades to come, says a leading American educator. Addressing a Malaysian forum on entrepreneurial education, Nancy L. Zimpher, Chancellor of the State University of New York, noted the rate of kids completing education in her US state was little better than in the developing nation she was visiting. For every 100 New York kids entering high school, just 57 ...

When continents collide: A new twist to a 50 million-year-old tale

2012-03-01
ANN ARBOR, Mich. --- Fifty million years ago, India slammed into Eurasia, a collision that gave rise to the tallest landforms on the planet, the Himalaya Mountains and the Tibetan Plateau. India and Eurasia continue to converge today, though at an ever-slowing pace. University of Michigan geomorphologist and geophysicist Marin Clark wanted to know when this motion will end and why. She conducted a study that led to surprising findings that could add a new wrinkle to the well-established theory of plate tectonics – the dominant, unifying theory of geology. "The exciting ...

Breast Lift Versus Breast Augmentation

2012-03-01
Women of all ages decide they want to undergo breast surgery to improve their profile or figure. Understanding that there are different kinds of breast surgery procedures that have their own unique benefits is important. Some women want to know how they can benefit from a breast lift versus breast augmentation. Knowing that a breast lift may benefit you more than breast augmentation can help you decide which procedure is best. Breast Lift Also known as mastopexy, a breast lift is better for women who are more concerned about sagging or drooping breasts than breast ...

First breakdown of public health data for Cleveland neighborhoods

2012-03-01
Today, the Prevention Research Center for Healthy Neighborhoods of Case Western Reserve University release new health data from Cleveland neighborhood groups on three of the most pressing public health concerns: obesity, hypertension, and diabetes. The three data briefs – statistical public health publications – group Cleveland neighborhoods and provide prevalence estimates for diabetes, hypertension awareness and obesity using five years of local survey data. Previously, these measures were only available for the city of Cleveland. "This data allow the local public ...

China's urbanization unlikely to lead to fast growth of middle class: UW geographer

2012-03-01
The number of people living in China's cities, which last year for the first time surpassed 50 percent of the national population, is considered a boon for the consumer goods market. That is based on the assumption that there will be more families with more disposable income when poor farmers from China's countryside move to cities and become middle-class industrial and office workers. But the assumption overlooks a policy from the era of Chinese leader Mao Zedong that restricts the upward mobility of its rural citizens, says a University of Washington geographer. This ...

A 2-pronged attack: Why loss of STAT1 is bad news

2012-03-01
The so-called signal transducers and activators of transcription (STATs) are involved in the regulation of cell division but details of their functions remain a matter of conjecture. In the development of breast cancer, the role of STAT1 is particularly interesting as high levels of STAT1 activity are known to be correlated with a better prognosis for breast cancer patients. There is a considerable body of evidence that STAT1 can act to suppress tumour growth in breast cancer but how does it function? Important clues are provided by the latest results of Christine Schneckenleithner ...

Inherited epigenetics produced record fast evolution

Inherited epigenetics produced record fast evolution
2012-03-01
The domestication of chickens has given rise to rapid and extensive changes in genome function. A research team at Linköping University in Sweden has established that the changes are heritable, although they do not affect the DNA structure. Humans kept Red Junglefowl as livestock about 8000 years ago. Evolutionarily speaking, the sudden emergence of an enormous variety of domestic fowl of different colours, shapes and sizes has occurred in record time. The traditional Darwinian explanation is that over thousands of years, people have bred properties that have arisen through ...

LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:

Laser correction for short-sightedness is safe and effective for older teenagers

About one in five people taking Ozempic, Wegovy or Mounjaro say food tastes saltier or sweeter than before

Taking semaglutide turns down food noise, research suggests

Type 2 diabetes may double risk of sepsis, large community-based study suggests

New quantum sensors can withstand extreme pressure

Tirzepatide more cost-effective than semaglutide in patients with knee osteoarthritis and obesity

GLP-1 drugs shown cost-effective for knee osteoarthritis and obesity

Interactive apps, AI chatbots promote playfulness, reduce privacy concerns

How NIL boosts college football’s competitive balance

Moffitt researchers develop machine learning model to predict urgent care visits for lung cancer patients

Construction secrets of honeybees: Study reveals how bees build hives in tricky spots

Wheat disease losses total $2.9 billion across the United States and Canada between 2018 and 2021

New funding fuels development of first potentially regenerative treatment for multiple sclerosis

NJIT student–faculty team wins best presentation award for ant swarm simulation

Ants defend plants from herbivores but can hinder pollination

When the wireless data runs dry

Inquiry into the history of science shows an early “inherence” bias

Picky eaters endure: Ecologists use DNA to explore diet breadth of wild herbivores

Study suggests most Americans would be healthier without daylight saving time

Increasing the level of the protein PI31 demonstrates neuroprotective effects in mice

Multi-energy X-ray curved surface imaging-with multi-layer in-situ grown scintillators

Metasurface enables compact and high-sensitivity atomic magnetometer

PFAS presence confirmed in the blood of children in Gipuzkoa

Why do people believe lies?

SwRI installs private 5G network for research, development, testing and evaluation

A new perspective in bone metabolism: Targeting the lysosome–iron–mitochondria axis for osteoclast regulation

Few military spouses use formal support services during, after deployment

Breakthrough in the hunt for light dark matter: QROCODILE project reveals world-leading constraints

2D x-ray imaging technique reveals hidden processes in CO2 electrolyzers

Rational high entropy doping strategy via modular in-situ/post solvothermal doping integration for microwave absorption

[Press-News.org] Experts call for cleaner air to tackle invisible killer
10 principles for clean air released ahead of review of air quality legislation