Study links air pollution to adult asthma problems

Tuesday, May 14, 1996 | 11:59 a.m.

Air pollution appears "significantly related" to asthma development in adults, according to a new study by the American Lung Association.

The study, released Monday, reports that ozone and airborne particles from dust and soot are linked to adult asthma.

"This new research provides the strongest link yet between air pollution and asthma, a disease that afflicts nearly 16 million Americans," said Fran DuMelle, ALA's deputy managing director.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has been sued by the American Lung Association over health standards for ozone and particulate matter.

Researchers from Loma Linda University in Southern California, the University of Arizona and the EPA examined more than 3,000 nonsmoking Seventh Day Adventists in California between 1977 and 1992.

During that period, 106 study participants developed asthma, study results said.

Investigators compared the cases to measured levels of pollution and discovered the link between air pollution exposure and asthma development. Ozone appeared to cause more cases in men, while particles initiated asthma in women.