[Dzana]

British air is shortening lives by nine years

EVEN breathing can be dangerous these days. Air pollution is knocking up to nine years off the lives of people who live in pollution hotspots or have a respiratory illness. So says a report by the UK House of Commons' Environmental Audit Committee.

Tiny particles of sulphate, carbon and dust are the most damaging to health, but nitrogen oxides and ozone also have an effect. The UK is in breach of European regulations for all of these, and could face fines of up to £300 million. Road transport is the main culprit. Power plants also churn out damaging particles but mostly away from cities.

Only a radical shift in transport policy will allow the UK to meet its targets, the report concludes. "But such a shift is unlikely to occur in the next 10 years, unless the government starts taking sustainable transport seriously," says Paul Firmin of the Institute for Transport Studies at the University of Leeds, UK.

Source - New Scientist

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More could be done to prevent the early deaths of up to 50,000 people each year hastened by air pollution, MPs say.

A Commons Environmental Audit Committee report said failure to reduce pollution had put an "enormous" cost on the NHS and could cost millions in EU fines. It said the UK should be "ashamed" of its poor air quality which was contributing to conditions such as asthma, heart disease and cancer. The government accepted more could be done and would consider the report.

'Invisible killer'

Pollutants such as ozone, nitrogen oxides and "particulate matter" - tiny particles - from transport and power stations have been blamed for contributing to early deaths.

Particulate matter is estimated to reduce people's lives by an average seven to eight months, while in pollution hotspots vulnerable residents, such as those with asthma, could be dying up to nine years early, the report says. Air pollution also leads to damage to wildlife and agriculture, with ground-level ozone estimated to reduce wheat yields in the south of Britain by 5% to 15%.


Source - BBC


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Millions of people have been contaminated with potentially dangerous gender-bending chemicals from food packaging, drinks cans and baby bottles, a study shows.

Researchers say the general public is 'ubiquitously' exposed to bisphenol A (BPA) - a man-made chemical linked to breast cancer, fertility problems and birth defects. The chemical, which mimics the female sex hormone oestrogen, was found at detectable levels in most pregnant women, teenagers and children.

Although the levels are within the official safety guidelines, anti-chemical campaigners say there is worrying evidence that BPA is harmful at low levels. They accused government agencies around the world of ignoring the mounting evidence against BPA - and putting health at risk.

BPA is used to make linings of food and drink cans. It is also found in plastic bottles, CD cases, plastic knives and forks and dental sealants. Although some animal studies have shown it is safe, others link it to breast cancer, liver damage, obesity, diabetes and fertility problems in animals. Studies have also linked it to heart disease in women.

Canada is so concerned at the threat it has banned BPA from babies' bottles. However, the Food Standards Agency insists that exposure levels in Britain are safe.

The new study, published in the journal Environmental Health Perspectives, analysed more than 80 studies which measured concentrations of BPA in bodily fluids.


Source - Daily Mail