Medical News Today: Tiny Diesel Fume Particles Raise Risk Of Heart Attacks
Date: 13.10.2011
Ultrafine particles in diesel exhaust fumes can harm blood vessels, leading to a greater chance of blood clots developing in the arteries, resulting in a greater risk of heart attack or stroke, researchers from the University of Edinburgh, Scotland revealed in the European Heart Journal.
The scientists measured the diesel exhaust fume impact on healthy individuals at levels similar to those found in highly polluted cities. They compared how each volunteer reacted to diesel fume gases, such as nitrogen dioxide (NO2) and carbon monoxide (CO), versus those caused by tiny chemical particles from exhausts.
This British Heart Foundation funded study demonstrated that it was the ultrafine particles, rather than the gases that undermined blood vessel function, particularly how they control bloodflow to the body's organs.
These ultrafine particles are less than one millionth of a meter wide. Special filters can be fitted to cars which trap them. This is already being done in US public transport vehicles...
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