Effects Consistent With Studies in Developed Countries

          A first-of-its-kind rigorous multi-city study of the effects of air pollution and health in Bangkok, Hong Kong, Shanghai and Wuhan has found significant mortality effects of acute exposure to urban air pollution, according to a report published in the journal Environmental Health Perspective and released at the Better Air Quality (BAQ) workshop yesterday.
          The study, funded and overseen by the Health Effects Institute (HEI) as a major project for Clean Air Initiative-Asia (CAI-Asia), is the first integrated assessment across multiple Asian cities using modern analytic methods that allows direct comparison to western results.
          “While a strong scientific literature exists in the developed world documenting the adverse relationship between air pollution and health, differences between developed and developing world populations have sometimes limited the use of western science in developing countries,” said Dr. Frank Speizer, of the Harvard Medical School and chairperson of the HEI International Oversight Committee. “These new studies bring fresh local evidence that the substantially higher levels of air pollution in Asia are also associated with significant health effects,” he added.
          The study’s finding of a 0.6% increase in mortality for every 10 micrograms (µg) of exposure to particulate air pollution is strikingly similar to comparable western results (which range from 0.4% to 0.6%) and provide increased confidence in the new Asian results. With daily levels of Asian particulate air pollution routinely at levels above 100 micrograms (much higher than the World Health Organization (WHO) Air Quality Guidelines), and very high population density in many Asian cities, these findings are a major cause for concern about the impact of air pollution on the health of Asian populations.
          Sumi Mehta, senior scientist at HEI and co-author of an EHP editorial accompanying the studies noted “those with existing heart and lung disease, the leading causes of death in Asia, are at increased risk of mortality due to air pollution. As Asian populations age, these risks can be expected to increase.” In light of this recent science, Asian countries should consider whether their current standards, and current levels of air pollution are adequately protecting the public’s health.
          The study, Public Health and Air Pollution in Asia” (PAPA): A multicity study of Short Term Effects of Air Pollution on Mortality was published in the journal Environmental Health Perspectives. It was funded by the U.S. based Heath Effects Institute and conducted by a team of Asian investigators coordinated by CM Wong of the University of Hong Kong and supported by HEI’s International Scientific Oversight Panel composed of leading scientists from around the world.
          The study was conducted under HEI’s Public Health and Air Pollution in Asia (PAPA) program in a novel capacity-building framework that led to the use of advanced analytic methods and rigorous quality assurance, designed in part to yield near-term policy-relevant science for Asian regulators and an ability to sustain that effort in the future.    
          The study is part of a broader effort by the HEI to bring together the world’s data on the acute effects of air pollution by funding a series of related analyses in North America, Europe, Latin America and Asia.  “We are seeing the early stages of an emerging consistency in carefully coordinated studies conducted across regions that can provide policy makers with confidence that population effects are more similar than different and that, similarly, pollution reduction measures can be expected to yield beneficial results no matter where they are implemented,” said Bob O’Keefe, Vice President of HEI and leader of its global programs.

          Media enquires:

          Robert O’Keefe rokeefe@healtheffects.org; +1 617 283 6174
          Sumi Mehta smehta@healtheffects.org   +1 617 792 8448