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II'° III'' HIIII IIII Fine particles linked to early -death risk -- study Amanda Peterka, E &E reporter Published: Tuesday, September 15, 2015 Exposure to fine airborne particles increases the risk of premature death, according to a new study of more than 500,000 people. An increase of just 10 micrograms per cubic meter of airborne fine particles increased the risk of death from all causes by 3 percent, the study led by New York University scientists found. "Our data add to a growing body of evidence that particulate matter is really harmful to health, increasing overall mortality, mostly deaths from cardiovascular disease, as well as deaths from respiratory disease in nonsmokers," said George Thurston, an NYU epidemiologist and the study's lead author, in a statement. Published online today in the journal Environmental Health Perspectives, the research was funded by the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences and NYU. Fine particles are about one - thirtieth the width of a human hair and have been linked by previous studies to health problems and premature death. The annual national ambient air quality standard for fine particulate matter is 12 micrograms per cubic meter. The NYU team said the new study was aimed at confirming whether work done in the past on higher levels of particles could be replicated. The researchers used data from the National Institutes of Health and AARP on 517,041 people aged 50 to 71 and living in California, Florida, Louisiana, New Jersey, North Carolina and Pennsylvania as well as in the Atlanta and Detroit areas. The data -- collected from 2000 to 2009 -- take into account factors that could affect health, such as level of education and alcohol consumption. They estimated exposure to fine particles by census tract using pollution data collected by U.S. EPA through its Air Quality System database. Along with finding an increase in death from all causes, the researchers found that an increase of 10 micrograms per cubic meter led to a 10 percent increase in the risk of death due to heart disease. The same pollution increase was associated with a 27 percent increase in the risk of death by respiratory disease for nonsmokers. The results were consistent regardless of gender, age group and level of education. "Our study is particularly notable because all the data used in our analysis comes from government- and independently held sources," Thurston said. Richard Hayes, a senior study author and an NYU epidemiologist, said in a statement more research is needed on which ingredients of fine particulate matter are most harmful to human beings. "We need to better inform policymakers about the types and sources of particulate pollution so they know where to focus regulations," he said. "It is especially important to continue monitoring health risks as national standards for air pollution are strengthened." Greenwire is written and produced by the staff of E &E Publishing, LLC