A professor from Simon Fraser University’s Faculty of Health and Science spoke on the harmful impact of pollutants on people’s daily neurological functions Thursday.
Bruce Lanphear, a professor in the Faculty of Health Science at Simon Fraser University, focuses his research on how certain toxins impact children’s health and how to communicate related messages through his videos.
“I am trying to make the science of environmental health more accessible to people, because what I have found is that it’s not enough to talk to Congress, it’s not enough to sit on advisory panels,” Lanphear said. “The one thing I have learned is you need two things to be successful: good science, and to get mothers pissed off.”
He went more into detail on the new commission report from The Lancet, an attempt to educate people world wide on the effects of pollutants on people.
Drawing on the research he has conducted and the new report, Lanphear has come to the realization there is no safe exposure amount to toxic chemicals such as lead, BPE and even air pollution.
“Air pollution is a major risk factor for heart disease, the leading cause of death world wide. We usually focus on diet or exercise to prevent heart disease but we can’t escape air pollution,” Lanphear said.
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Lanphear explained air pollution is a mixture of bad gases. Particles composed of toxic materials, like lead and arsenic in the air pollution, lead to the inflammation of the lungs, which can cause breathing problems and heart disease.
The concentration of these particles grows as you move closer to urbanized areas and industrial cities, Lanphear said.
“No matter where you live, reducing the number of particles in the air reduces the number of people who die of heart disease,” Lanphear said.
Lanphear belives we have greatly underestimated the impact air pollution has on mortality. Combating and reducing this pollution can prevent more than three million deaths a year, Lanphear said.
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It’s not just air pollution that is causing issues. Lanphear said toxic pollutants like lead and BPEs can affect the IQ of young children and even cause premature death.
“It isn’t only people’s lifestyle choices, you can’t continue to blame people,” Lanphear said. “We are starting to see that cardiovascular disease, the leading cause of death in the world, is greatly impacted by environmental issues.”
