Study: Low Levels of Air Pollution a Threat to Older Adults Hearts, Lungs

A study published in Circulation warns that even low levels of air pollution can damage the health of older adults' hearts and lungs, reports United Press International . Analysis of medical records of more than 63 million Medicare patients from 2000 to 2016 determined long-term exposure to low levels of air pollution could elevate the risk of pneumonia, heart attack, stroke, and atrial fibrillation. The investigators assessed fine particulate matter, nitrogen dioxide, and ozone, and associated each unit of increase in levels of those pollutants with thousands of hospitalizations a year. "When we restricted our analyses to individuals who were only exposed to lower concentrations of air pollution, we still found increased risk of hospital admissions with all of the studied outcomes, even at concentration levels below current national standards," said Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health's Mahdieh Danesh Yazdi. She added that these findings should prompt policymakers to reconsider current air pollutant standards.