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Objectives To better understand the burden of air pollution on deaths, we examined the effects of air pollutants on years of life lost (YLL) in Beijing, China.Design Retrospective regression analysis using daily time series.Setting 8 urban districts in Beijing, China.Participants 80 515 deaths (48 802 male, 31 713 female) recorded by the Beijing death classification system during 2004-08. Main outcome measuresAssociations between daily YLL and ambient air pollutants (particulate matter with aerodynamic diameter <2.5 µm (PM 2.5 ), PM 10 , SO 2 , and NO 2 ), after adjusting for long term trends, seasonality, day of the week, and weather conditions. We also examined mortality risk related to air pollutants. , respectively. All air pollutants had significant effects on years of life lost when we used single pollutant models. An interquartile range (IQR) increase in PM 2.5 , PM 10 , SO 2 , and NO 2 was related to YLL increases of 15.8, 15.8, 16.2, and 15.1 years, respectively. The effects of air pollutants on YLL appeared acutely and lasted for two days (lag 0-1); these effects associated with an IQR increase in PM 2.5 were greater in women than men (11.1 (95% confidence interval 4.7 to 17.5) v 4.7 (−2.9 to 12.3) YLL) and in people aged up to 65 years than those older than 65 years (12.0 (2.9 to 21) v 3.8 (−0.9 to 8.6) YLL). The mortality risk associated with an IQR increase in PM 2.5 was greater for people older than 65 years (2.5% (95% confidence interval 0.6% to 4.5%) increase of mortality) than those aged up to 65 years (0.7% (−0.8% to 2.2%)). ResultsConclusions YLL provides a complementary measure for examining the effect of air pollutants on mortality. Increased YLL are associated with increased air pollution. This study highlights the need to reduce air pollution in Beijing, China, to protect the health of the population. IntroductionThe effects of air pollution on human health have recently attracted increasing concern in China, in part due to the increasing number of days with very high levels of air pollution.1 2 In most Chinese cities, concentrations of PM 2.5 (particulate matter with aerodynamic diameter <2.5 µm) are still far above the level recommended by the World Health Organization's guidelines on air quality (interim target 2 level) of 10 μg/m 3 (annual average) and 25 μg/m 3 (24 h average). 3 For example, in 2004-08, mean daily PM 2.5 concentration was 105 μg/m 3 in Beijing. Beijing is experiencing increasing population density, car use, and expanded construction. It is surrounded by a heavy industrial region, which provides additional sources of air pollutants carried via air flow. Consequently, the ambient pollutant mixture is complex, with the potential for combined toxic effects from many constituents.Reliable estimation of the burden of air pollution on health is essential to support evidence based government policy in this important public health area.4 5 Previous studies have examined the effects of air pollution on daily excess deaths or mortality risks using time series methods.6 7...

Hierarchical porous carbon for high volumetric energy density supercapacitors is prepared using biomass derivatives through a facile and green process.

BackgroundWith the increase of motor vehicles, ambient air pollution related to traffic exhaust has become an important environmental issue in China. Because of their fast growth and development, children are more susceptible to ambient air pollution exposure. Many chemicals from traffic exhaust, such as carbon monoxide, nitrogen dioxide, and lead, have been reported to show adverse effects on neurobehavioral functions. Several studies in China have suggested that traffic exhaust might affect neurobehavioral functions of adults who have occupational traffic exhaust exposure. However, few data have been reported on the effects on neurobehavioral function in children.ObjectivesThe objective of this study was to explore the association between traffic-related air pollution exposure and its effects on neurobehavioral function in children.MethodsThis field study was conducted in Quanzhou, China, where two primary schools were chosen based on traffic density and monitoring data of ambient air pollutants. School A was located in a clear area and school B in a polluted area. We monitored NO2 and particulate matter with aerodynamic diameter ≤ 10 μm as indicators for traffic-related air pollution on the campuses and in classrooms for 2 consecutive days in May 2005. The children from second grade (8–9 years of age) and third grade (9–10 years of age) of the two schools (n = 928) participated in a questionnaire survey and manual-assisted neurobehavioral testing. We selected 282 third-grade children (school A, 136; school B, 146) to participate in computer-assisted neurobehavioral testing. We conducted the fieldwork between May and June 2005. We used data from 861 participants (school A, 431; school B, 430) with manual neurobehavioral testing and from all participants with computerized testing for data analyses.ResultsMedia concentrations of NO2 in school A and school B campus were 7 μg/m3 and 36 μg/m3, respectively (p < 0.05). The ordinal logistic regression analyses showed that, after controlling the potential confounding factors, participants living in the polluted area showed poor performance on all testing; differences in results for six of nine tests (66.7%) achieved statistical significance: Visual Simple Reaction Time with preferred hand and with nonpreferred hand, Continuous Performance, Digit Symbol, Pursuit Aiming, and Sign Register.ConclusionWe found a significant relationship between chronic low-level traffic-related air pollution exposure and neurobehavioral function in exposed children. More studies are needed to explore the effects of traffic exhaust on neurobehavioral function and development.