Health Effects of Environmental Emissions

**3**

**Chapter 1**

**Abstract**

**1. Introduction**

Effects of Environmental

*Farzaneh Hajirasouliha and Dominika Zabiegaj*

Emissions on the Respiratory

System: Secrets and Consequences

Human health has been affected adversely by air pollution as a serious environmental challenge. Ambient (outdoor) air pollution mainly resulted from human activities (e.g., fuel combustion, heat generation, industrial facilities) causes 4.2 million deaths every year. Moreover, each year, 3.8 million people die from indoor air pollution which means household exposure to smoke from fuels and dirty cook stoves. They are the risks of stroke, heart attack, lung disease, or cancer that resulted from air pollution which assaults our brain, heart, and lungs using its invisible weapons named particulate matter (PM). These inhalable particles are of a nanoscale or microscale size. Upon inhalation, the air with its components enters the human body through the respiratory system. The lungs are the responsible organs for gas exchange with blood. Inhaled particles, such as silica, organic compounds, and metallic dusts, have toxic effects on our pulmonary system. For example, the accumulation of nanoparticles in the kidneys, liver, spleen, and central nervous system through the penetration of the epithelial barriers in the lungs has been observed. The purpose of this chapter is to describe the toxic effects of air particles on the different organs in the human body

and to introduce some of the adverse effects of air pollution on human health.

**Keywords:** pulmonary system, human health, toxicity, nanoparticles, PM2.5

nism of actions of these pollutants will be discussed.

**2. Environmental emissions and human health**

spread emissions is air pollution.

Environmental emission is the pollutants around us in a gas or vapor phase. They can be gas or even solid particles in the air we breathe. If these materials find a way to get in touch with our human body, they may cause adverse effects on our health. There are various ways that they can reach human organs, from the skin to internal organs such as the lungs and brains. The toxicity of these particles depends on the nature of the particles and their size. In this chapter, the size of the particles that are the most dangerous ones is introduced, and the diseases and some of the mecha-

Environmental emissions are the pollutants discharged to our surrounding environment in a gas or vapor phase. Therefore, the outspoken result of such extensively

#### **Chapter 1**
