Research by National Taiwan University (NTU) indicates that PM2.5 — fine particulate matter measuring 25 micrometers in diameter or smaller — might have been a factor in more than 6,000 deaths nationwide last year, with exposure to the pollutant linked to numerous diseases.
NTU epidemiology professor Lin Hsien-ho (林先和) yesterday said that his research team analyzed pollution data and occurrence patterns of four chronic diseases — coronary artery disease, stroke, lung cancer and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease — and estimated that 6,275 people with those diseases died last year after long-term exposure to PM2.5.
The research found a regional difference in the disease-causing contribution of PM2.5.
PM2.5 contributed to 22 percent of the deaths in Yunlin among people with the four diseases, 21.7 percent in Nantou, 21.6 percent in Kaohsiung, but only 8.7 percent in Hualien, as industrial and traffic emissions are most severe in the nation’s west, Lin said, adding that on a national average, PM2.5 is a factor in 19 percent of the deaths caused by the four diseases.
The team collected data pertaining to 100,000 New Taipei City residents and estimated PM2.5 exposure levels with pollution data gathered from air quality monitoring stations in the city, Lin said.
For every 10 micrograms per cubic meter increase in PM2.5, there was a 39 percent increased risk of tuberculosis, Lin said.
Every 10 parts per billion elevation in nitrogen dioxide and nitrogen oxide — major pollutants from vehicle exhausts — increases the risk of tuberculosis by 33 percent and 21 percent respectively, he said.
Tuberculosis is the No. 1 infectious disease in Taiwan in terms of occurrence and mortality rate, with the disease claiming 600 lives amid 11,000 new cases last year, he said.
“The NTU research indicates that a nationwide decrease of 10 micrometers per cubic meter of PM2.5 could prevent 2,000 to 3,000 tuberculosis cases per year, so it is reasonable and urgent to establish an inter-ministerial program to lower the annual PM2.5 level to the WHO standard,” Centers for Disease Control Director Kuo Hsu-sung (郭旭崧) said, adding that the nation’s annual PM2.5 concentration was 25 micrometers per cubic meter last year, while the WHO’s recommended maximum is 10 micrometers per cubic meter.
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