Exposure to air pollution accelerates the thickening of artery walls that leads to cardiovascular disease, say researchers.


Pollution (Getty Images)
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The study, by boffins at the Keck School of Medicine of the University of Southern California (USC), in collaboration with international partners in Spain and Switzerland and colleagues in California, has been published in the journal PloS ONE. In the study researchers found that artery wall thickening among people living within 100 meters (328 feet) of a Los Angeles highway progressed twice as quickly as those who lived farther away. “The fact that we can detect progression of atherosclerosis in relation to ambient air pollution above and beyond other well-established risk factors indicates that environmental factors may play a larger role in the risk for cardiovascular disease than previously suspected,” says study co-author Howard N. Hodis, M.D., director of the Atherosclerosis Research Unit and professor of medicine and preventive medicine at the Keck School of Medicine. Atherosclerosis—or stiffening and calcification of arteries—is a condition that leads to heart attacks, stroke and related deaths.

Enviromental Issue

Endangered Wildlife Initiatives
Earthtrust programs in Asia stress innovative strategies to support the reduction of wildlife trade, and the protection of endangered species and their habitats

Earthtrust initiated its first land-based program in 1989, focusing on the need to preserve and protect tigers. As an outgrowth of the process of gathering information, establishing Asian contacts and building a worldwide network for tiger protection, Earthtrust's concerns have expanded to include other species endangered by illegal trade and vanishing habitats.
Earthtrust also works directly with foundations and visionary individuals to create custom strategies and programs to save targeted species and habitats; for information contact ET president Don White at this address:
Rhino CampaignUntil 1994, Keith Highley [66K GIF picture of Keith in field] and Suzie Chang Highley managed Earthtrust's field office in Taiwan, investigating wildlife trade and the sale of animal body parts used in the preparation of traditional medicines. Demand for these products drives the poaching, smuggling, and black market network worldwide for a variety of species from tiger to bear and rhinoceros. The Highleys created an awareness and education campaign to inform the public about the threat to African and Asian rhinoceros species resulting from the popularity of rhino horn-based medicinals. A Chinese-language color map, brochure and video titled "Save the Rhino" have been produced using information and footage obtained on the Asian Wildlife Initiative's African expedition.Tiger CampaignAn extensive market survey of tiger parts in Taiwan was completed in March 1993. The data confirms the continued demand for a variety of tiger parts, despite domestic laws which prohibit trade in endangered species. The Highleys developed a five-point Action Plan for Taiwan which emphasizes effective law enforcement and education as necessary steps toward ending the consumption of tiger parts. Earthtrust efforts have also included providing information and documentation to Washington DC State Department and USFWS officials regarding Taiwan's promises to take concrete steps to shut down the trade in rhino horn and tiger parts. We support legislative measures designed to ensure strengthened legislation, enforcement and penalties concerning the sale and possession of endangered species products.Bear CampaignEarthtrust, in conjunction with the Humane Society of the United States, has also done extensive field work to document the trade in bear parts, particularly bear gall bladders and bear paws, which are parts of the Chinese medicine and the "exotic gourmet" trend in East Asia, respectively. The Highleys again spearheaded this effort, conducting sometimes dangerous undercover work in China. Their sometimes shocking results are documented in their extensive report, titled "Bear Farming and Trade in China and Taiwan".Marine ActivitiesDriftnetting and dolphin-drive fisheries are also monitored on a regular basis. In the spring of 1990, Earthtrust campaigners from Hawaii, California, New Zealand, and Taiwan met on the island of Penghu, Taiwan to document the traditional capture and slaughter of migrating dolphins. Many of the dolphins and pseudorcas captured were released after Earthtrust recruited the support of educational, religious, and political leaders in negotiating with the local fishermen. Because of Earthtrust's activities to focus international attention on the issue, the Taiwan Council of Agriculture added dolphins to the list of protected species covered by their Wildlife Protection Law. Earthtrust continues to work toward supporting enforcement of the new law and preventing the capture of dolphins in Taiwan, by conducting information programs for school children and community groups.
Photos of Dolphin Kills at Penghu.