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Health effects and the baby boomers — middle age
Published in J. Mangano Joseph, Low-Level Radiation and Immune System Damage, 2018
Asthma is a disease of the respiratory system, marked by inflammation or obstruction of the airways. It is a common disease affecting an estimated 9 to 12 million Americans, and is most prevalent among children. Asthma is a type of allergy; thus, the failure of the body to handle allergens such as ragweed, pollen, and dust makes a person more susceptible to asthma.
Monitoring airborne pollen in New Zealand
Published in Journal of the Royal Society of New Zealand, 2022
CO2 is the energy source for plants and recent research indicates that higher rates of photosynthesis due to increasing atmospheric levels of CO2 are generating higher pollen production in certain plants. Some important pollen allergens are now known to be susceptible to this so called ‘CO2 fertilisation effect’, including ragweed (Ambrosia), which has been shown to increase pollen production significantly when exposed to progressively higher atmospheric CO2 levels (Ziska and Caulfield 2000; Rogers et al. 2006). A controlled laboratory experiment involving timothy grass (Phleum pratense), a widely dispersed pasture grass in the temperate world and one of the known principal pollen allergens in New Zealand (Figure 1; Newnham, Fountain, et al. 1995), showed that elevated levels of CO2 increased the amount of grass pollen produced by significant amounts, even with increased O3 levels, which can inhibit the CO2 enhancement (Albertine et al. 2014). At 800 ppm atmospheric CO2, ∼ double the current level and within the mid-range of most emissions scenario projections for 2100, airborne grass pollen concentrations are estimated to increase by up to 200%. Whilst the CO2 fertilisation effect is helping to mitigate the consequences of increased carbon emissions, these studies indicate that it is also resulting in significant impacts on human health worldwide.
Climate change in the human environment: Indicators and impacts from the Fourth National Climate Assessment
Published in Journal of the Air & Waste Management Association, 2021
Laura E. Stevens, Thomas K. Maycock, Brooke C. Stewart
Climate change is also expected to exacerbate the adverse health impacts of plant-based pollens. Elevated CO2 levels have been directly associated with stronger pollen production for some important sources of allergenic pollen, including ragweed, pine trees, and oak trees. Changes consistent with warming, including warmer winters and longer growing seasons, have also been associated with increased exposure to aeroallergens. However, research so far is less conclusive as to whether these changes have or will lead to changes in health outcomes (Nolte et al. 2018). Conversely, warming may reduce exposure in some cases; for example, drier conditions expected in some areas may reduce pollen exposure (Fann et al. 2016).
A comprehensive summary of disease variants implicated in metal allergy
Published in Journal of Toxicology and Environmental Health, Part B, 2022
It has been estimated that 40–60% of allergic subjects exhibit ocular symptoms concurrent with other clinical manifestations of hypersensitivity reactions; however, ocular allergy is also known to occur independently of other allergic conditions (Bucolo et al. 2015). Most allergic responses implicating the eyes involve exposed ocular surfaces like the eyelid, conjunctiva, limbus, and cornea (Chigbu 2009). Similarly, some of the most common hypersensitivity responses that remain localized to the eye area include allergic conjunctivitis, contact dermatitis of the eyelids, atopic keratoconjunctivitis, and contact blepharoconjunctivitis (Bielory 2008). These ocular hypersensitivity responses might emerge as a result of various underlying mechanisms that may be either IgE- or non-IgE-mediated. Major causative agents of ocular allergy include seasonal aeroallergens such as pollens and ragweed, animal proteins, reactive chemicals, and drugs (Bielory 2008; Soparkar et al. 1997). Occasional reports have also cited various metals as potential causative agents of ocular allergy. For example, occupational exposure to Au was found associated with the emergence of delayed-type blepharoconjunctivitis, while Cr and Ni have been implicated in cases of allergic conjunctivitis (Estlander et al. 1998; Gibb et al. 2000; Mancuso and Berdondini 2002). In addition, eyelid dermatitis is a common manifestation of contact hypersensitivity to Ni, Co, Au, iron (Fe), and Cr that merge following application of cosmetics and in response to dental metal exposure (Goossens 2004; Huang et al. 2021; McDaniel and Couch 2017; Oh et al. 2016; Poziomkowska‐Gęsicka et al. 2018; Saxena, Warshaw, and Ahmed 2001).