This review presents a brief overview of the health effects and exposures of two criteria pollutants--ozone and particulate matter--and two toxic air pollutants--benzene and formaldehyde. These pollutants were selected from the six criteria pollutants and from the 189 toxic air pollutants on the basis of their prevalence in the United States, their physicochemical behavior, and the magnitude of...

Urban agglomerations are places of increased emissions of anthropogenic pollutants into the atmosphere. Since most of these pollutants are harmful to humans, reduction of their ambient concentrations is a major issue of environmental policy on international, national, and local levels. According to Wiederkehr and Yoon (1998), air pollutants can be grouped into major and trace or hazardous air p...

Ground level ozone, airborne particulates (TSP), carbon monoxide, volatile organic compounds (VOCs), nitrogen oxides and sulfur oxides and lead are all regulated and monitored closely by the EPA and are termed "criteria air pollutants." They are considered to be some of the most damaging pollutants because they are so prevalent. Their impacts have been studied extensively, and much benefit cost...

In recent years, worldwide attention has shifted from point source to non-point source (NPS) pollutants, particularly with regard to the pollution of surface and subsurface sources of drinking water. This is due to the widespread occurrence and potential chronic health effects of NPS pollutants. The ubiquitous nature of NPS pollutants poses a complex technical problem. The area1 extent of their...

Human milk is an important food source for infant because it contains a large number of nutritional substances, growth and immune factors. However, human milk may be contaminated with environmental pollutants when mothers are exposed to these pollutants. In particular, lipophilic organic pollutants are likely to accumulate in milk fat. Therefore, the determination of the organic pollutants leve...

Panel studies show a consistent association between increase in the cardiovascular hospitalizations with air pollutants in economically developed regions, but little evidence in less developed inland areas. In this study, a time-series analysis was used to examine the specific effects of major air pollutants [particulate matter less than 10 microns in diameter (PM(10)), sulfur dioxide (SO(2)), ...