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Heart Attack and Stroke

Wood Smoke, Heart Attack, and Stroke

Scientific studies have recently linked the fine particle pollution created by burning wood to heart attack and stroke.

The American Heart Association puts it this way: “Epidemiological studies have demonstrated a consistent increased risk for cardiovascular events in relation to both short- and long-term exposure to present-day concentrations of ambient particulate matter.”

Studies overwhelmingly show that fine particulate pollution is a risk factor for heart attacks and death from strokes. A 1994 report on the adverse effects of particulate air pollution reported a 1.4 percent increase in cardiovascular mortality for each 10 mg/m3 increase in particulate matter.

In other words, when particulate pollution goes up, so do deaths from heart disease and stroke.