Environmental Health Perspectives, July 2011
Indoor Air Pollution and Blood Pressure in Adult Women Living in Rural China
Jill Baumgartner, et al.
Background: Almost half the world’s population uses coal and biomass fuels for domestic energy. Limited evidence suggests that exposure to air pollutants from indoor biomass combustion may be associated with elevated blood pressure. Our aim was to assess the relationship between air pollution exposure from indoor biomass combustion and blood pressure in women in rural China.
Methods: We measured 24-hr personal integrated gravimetric exposure to fine particles less than 2.5 microns in aerodynamic diameter (PM2.5) and systolic (SBP) and diastolic blood pressure (DBP) in the winter and summer among 280 women ≥25 years old living in rural households using biomass fuels in Yunnan, China. We investigated the association between PM2.5 exposure and SBP and DBP using mixed-effects models with random intercepts to account for correlation among repeated measures.
Results: Personal average 24-hr exposure to PM2.5 ranged from 22 to 634 µg/m3 in winter and 9 to 492 µg/m3 in summer. A one log-µg/m3 increase in PM2.5 exposure was associated with 2.2 mmHg (95% CI: 0.8, 3.7; p=0.003) higher SBP and 0.5 mmHg (95% CI: -0.4, 1.3; p=0.31) higher DBP among all women; estimated effects varied by age group. Among women >50 years old, a one log-µg/m3 increase in PM2.5 exposure was associated with 4.1 mmHg (95% CI: 1.5, 6.6; p=0.002) higher SBP and 1.8 mmHg (95% CI: 0.4, 3.2; p=0.01) higher DBP. PM2.5 exposure was positively associated with SBP among younger women, but the association was not statistically significant.
Conclusion: PM2.5 exposure from biomass combustion may be a risk factor for elevated blood pressure, and hence for cardiovascular events. Our findings should be corroborated in longitudinal studies.
