Wildfire smoke in California has been linked with a 76% increase in the rate of asthma exacerbations for children, according to a new analysis.
The study by researchers from Stanford University and the technology company Komodo Health also found wildfire smoke led to a 27% increase in the number of daily related asthma-related visits to emergency departments for children during the the Butte County wildfire in 2018.
According to the study, these daily rates were even greater for children of color, with a 95% increase in asthma exacerbations for Hispanic and Latino children in the San Francisco Bay area during the wildfire.
The study also highlights the relationship between regional poverty, home ownership, and asthma-related emergency department visits.
Researchers found children who lived in areas with lower rates of home ownership and education were at a 51% and 45% higher risk of emergency department visits related to asthma, respectively.
And it added paediatric asthma-related emergency department visits was 38% higher for children living in the most underprivileged communities.
Kenneth Mendez, the president and chief executive of the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America said climate change and wildfires have had a disproportionate impact on many communities in an interview.
Mendez said black Americans are still three times more likely to die from asthma and five times more likely to be treated emergency room.
He added wildfires are becoming more frequent and allergy seasons are also getting longer and more intense, which can trigger asthma attacks and led to them becoming more severe.
“This report confirms climate change and global warming is really has a negative impact on kids with asthma, and certain communities with asthma,” he told me.
Mendez said there are also additional long-term impacts of suffering from childhood asthma, including missing school and scarred lung tissue.
Looking forward, he said it important to tackle the causes of wildfires and climate change by reducing our carbon footprint.
Mendez said highlighted the need to reduce tailpipe emissions from vehicles and also increase federal funding for states and cities to help mitigate some of the health impacts at a local level.
Dr. Marc Carmichael, from Stanford University, and who is an advisor to Komodo Health, said the study raise critical questions about whether racial, socio-economic, and educational disparities make certain populations more vulnerable to the consequences of climate change in an email.
Dr. Carmichael added recent studies have indicated that particulate matter – sometimes referred to as PM2.5 – from wildfire smoke has a greater impact on respiratory health than fine particulates from other sources.
“Moreover, the long-term effects of acute exposure to a smoke wave on a child’s health remain unknown,” he added.
“The results of this study and others suggest that prioritizing policies that address existing socioeconomic and educational disparities is a critical part of developing the infrastructure that could prevent the adverse effects of climate change from impacting the health of our communities.”
The analysis follows a separate report, which waned the current spate of wildfires could cost the economy of the United States more than $89 billion in lost output and have a profound effect on the national economy.
