Researchers at Montreal’s McGill University have found that ultrafine particles from vehicles and industry are linked to the deaths of an estimated 1,100 people per year in Canada’s two biggest cities.
Their study, published in the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, finds that long-term exposure to the pollutants known as UFPs increases the risk of respiratory and coronary artery disease deaths in particular.
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Researchers tracked air pollution levels between 2001 and 2016 in neighbourhoods of Toronto and Montreal that are home to a total of about 1.5 million people and used statistical methods to calculate the connection between exposure to UFPs and the risk of death.
Lead investigator Scott Weichenthal says in a McGill news release that the tiny size of the particles allows them to penetrate deep into the human body and enter the bloodstream, contributing to heart and lung diseases, as well as some forms of cancer.
The study’s authors say Ottawa and the provinces need to set concentration limits for UFPs the way they have done to regulate larger fine articles.
Weichenthal said previous studies have underestimated the health dangers posed by such small particles.