[cleanairuk_news] Health effects of air pollution and noise update for May 2013 (via barbara at sheffieldct.co.uk)

Network for Clean Air contact at cleanairuk.org
Tue Jun 11 14:52:55 BST 2013 

The bulletin below was prepared by Barbara Rimmington at the East End Quality of Life Initiative.

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	 Subject:  Health effects of air pollution and noise update for May 2013 
	 Date:  Fri, 31 May 2013 08:59:38 +0000 
	 From:  East End Quality of Life Initiative <barbara at sheffieldct.co.uk> 
	 Reply-To:  East End Quality of Life Initiative <barbara at sheffieldct.co.uk> 

 HEALTH EFFECTS OF AIR QUALITY AND NOISE - UPDATE
MAY 2013 

	 View this email in your browser  

	 REVIEW OF EVIDENCE ON HEALTH ASPECTS OF AIR POLLUTION – REVIHAAP, FIRST RESULTS 
This document presents answers to 22 questions relevant for the review of European policies on air pollution and addressing health aspects of these policies. The answers were developed by a large group of scientists engaged in the WHO project “Review of evidence on health aspects of air pollution – REVIHAAP”. The experts reviewed and discussed the newly accumulated scientific evidence on health effects of air pollution, formulating science-based conclusions and drafting the answers. Extensive rationale for the answers, including the list of key references, will be provided in the final report from the project. The review concludes that a considerable amount of new scientific information on health effects of particulate matter, ozone and nitrogen dioxide, observed at levels commonly present in Europe, has been published in the recent years. This new evidence supports the scientific conclusions of the WHO Air Quality Guidelines, last updated in 2005, and indicates that the effects can occur at air pollution concentrations lower than those serving to establish the 2005 Guidelines. It also provides scientific arguments for the decisive actions to improve air quality and reduce the burden of disease associated with air pollution in Europe.  /WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION/, 2013, 28pp - read report   

	 CLEANER AIR FOR ALL. WHY IS IT IMPORTANT AND WHAT SHOULD WE DO?
/EUROPEAN COMMISSION/ Fact Sheet on Air Quality, 2013, 4pp - read article  

CONTRIBUTION FROM THE TEN MAJOR EMISSION SECTORS IN EUROPE AND DENMARK TO THE HEALTH-COST EXTERNALITIES OF AIR POLLUTION USING THE EVA MODEL SYSTEM – AN INTEGRATED MODELLING APPROACH.  
Brandt, J., Silver, J.D., Christensen, J.H., Andersen, M.S. et al.   
Researchers have developed a new model to assess the health-related external costs arising from air pollution from ten major emission sectors. Applying the model at national and Europe-wide levels, they suggested that the major contributors to costs were industrial power production, agriculture, road traffic and domestic combustion.
/ATMOSPHERIC CHEMISTRY & PHYSICS/ 13:5871-5922 - read abstract   

	 THE ASSOCIATION OF AMBIENT AIR POLLUTION AND TRAFFIC EXPOSURES WITH SELECTED CONGENITAL ANOMALIES IN THE SAN JOAQUIN VALLEY OF CALIFORNIA
Amy M. Padula, Ira B. Tager, Suzan L. Carmichael, S. Katharine Hammond,
Frederick Lurmann, Gary M. Shaw
We observed increased odds of neural tube defects when comparing the highest with the lowest quartile of exposure for several pollutants after adjusting for maternal race/ethnicity, education, and multivitamin use.The highest quartile of nitrogen oxide exposure was associated with neural tube defects (adjusted odds ratio = 1.8, 95% confidence interval: 1.1, 2.8). The adjusted odds ratio for the highest quartile of nitrogen dioxide exposure was 1.7 (95% confidence interval: 1.1, 2.7). Ozone was associated with decreased odds of neural tube defects. Our results extend the limited body of evidence regarding air pollution exposure and adverse birth outcomes.
/AMERICAN JOURNAL OF EPIDEMIOLOGY/, 177:10, 1074-1085 - read abstract  

	 FINE PARTICULATE AIR POLLUTION AND THE PROGRESSION OF CAROTID INTIMA-MEDIAL THICKNESS: A PROSPECTIVE COHORT STUDY FROM THE MULTI-ETHNIC STUDY OF ATHEROSCLEROSIS AND AIR POLLUTION
Sara D. Adar, Lianne Sheppard, Sverre Vedal, Joseph F. Polak, Paul D. Sampson, Ana V. Diez Roux, Matthew Budoff, David R. Jacobs Jr, R. Graham Barr, Karol Watson, Joel D. Kaufman
This early analysis from MESA suggests that higher long-term PM2.5 concentrations are associated with increased IMT progression and that greater reductions in PM2.5 are related to slower IMT progression. These findings, even over a relatively short follow-up period, add to the limited literature on air pollution and the progression of atherosclerotic processes in humans. If confirmed by future analyses of the full 10 years of follow-up in this cohort, these findings will help to explain associations between long-term PM2.5 concentrations and clinical cardiovascular events.
/PLOS MED/ 10(4): e1001430. doi:10.1371/journal.pmed.1001430 - read article  

	 ASSOCIATION BETWEEN AMBIENT PARTICULATE MATTER AND DAILY CAUSE-SPECIFIC MORTALITY IN TANGGU, TIANJIN BINHAI NEW AREA, CHINA
Ting Wang, Guo-xing Li, Jing Sun, Nicholas Buys, Hong-mei Liu, Ming-fa Liu, Ming Ni, Bo-wen Li, Xiu-fen Liang, Xiaochuan Pan 
A 10 μg/m3 increment of PM10 was associated with a 1.02% (95% confidence interval (CI): 0.48, 1.56) increase in cardiovascular mortality, and a 0.88% (95% CI: 0.36, 1.39) increase in cardiopulmonary mortality. In addition, the effects from PM10 appear to be consistent with multi-pollutant models. The results show that there are strong associations between daily cardiovascular and cardiopulmonary mortality and ambient PM10 exposure.
/INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH RESEARCH/ 23:3, 2013, 205-214 - read abstract  

PATHWAYS FOR PROCESSING NOISE. HEART HEALTH AND THE SOUNDS OF EVERYDAY LIFE  
Julia R. Barrett

The study included a large number of individual­level measure­ments, control for air pollution effects and physical activity, and separate consideration of low­ and high­intensity noise. There may have been residual confounding and data gaps from unmeasured variables, and because the study population was made up of older adults, conclusions may not extend to the general population. Nevertheless, the findings suggest that low­intensity noise activates biological pathways separate from the “fight­or­flight” response triggered by louder noises; the potential health consequences should be explored.  

/ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH PERSPECTIVES/ 121:5, May 2013, p167 - read article   

THE POTENTIAL OF BUILDING ENVELOPE GREENING TO ACHIEVE QUIETNESS.  
Van Renterghem, T. et al.

Green roofs have the potential to significantly reduce road traffic noise in the urban environment, according to a new study. The results suggest that greening of roofs and walls with materials suitable for growing plants softens the urban environment keeping sound levels low, whereas hard, manmade structures tend to amplify traffic noise. /BUILDING AND ENVIRONMENT/, 61, 34–44 - read abstract 

	 QUEST FOR HEALTH EFFECTS GOES ON; NOISE AND HEALTH ONCE AGAIN HITS THE HEADLINES
Lis Stedman , a review article in /NOISE BULLETIN/, Issue 71, April 2013   

LONG-TERM EXPOSURE TO ROAD TRAFFIC NOISE AND INCIDENT DIABETES: A COHORT STUDY  
Mette Sørensen, Zorana J. Andersen, Rikke B. Nordsborg, Thomas Becker, Anne Tjønneland, Kim Overvad, Ole Raaschou-Nielsen  
It has been estimated that approximately a third of the population of the EU is exposed to traffic noise in the home that exceeds World Health Organization guidelines. Noise levels, especially in urban areas, are often high enough to disrupt sleep and cause stress. In this study, partly conducted under the EU QUIET project, researchers investigated   
whether noise exposure is related to the risk of developing diabetes. When analysing the data, the researchers were careful to rule out aspects which might also affect the risk of diabetes, such as sex, weight, diet and smoking. One factor which was particularly important to control for was air pollution, since this is higher in areas of higher traffic noise, and has also been linked to diabetes. Finally, the study discusses why noise pollution may lead to diabetes. They note that, among other possible causes, stress hormones can cause reduced insulin production which can contribute to diabetes.

/ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH PERSPECTIVES/ 121,2 February 2013, pp217-222 - read abstract or full article    

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