Assessing health risks associated with exposure to household and ambient air pollution in rural and urban China
Lead Research Organisation:
University of Oxford
Department Name: Clinical Trial Service Unit
Abstract
Air pollution is an important cause of ill-health worldwide. This is particularly the case in China and many other developing countries, in which outdoor air pollution is worsening due to increased traffic and industrial activities. Furthermore, many people still use solid fuels (e.g. wood, charcoal or coal) for cooking and heating in rural areas, generating harmful smoke and other toxic substances inside the home. Although we know that air pollution causes death and illness at the population level, the exact extent is not fully understood because accurate information is lacking. Reliable estimation of the disease risks arising from air pollution requires measurements of individual exposures to air pollution and their subsequent disease outcomes (i.e. onset of new diseases and death). We propose to address this knowledge gap using the China Kadoorie Biobank (CKB), a large study of 500,000 men and women recruited from 10 diverse urban and rural areas in China in 2004-08 with detailed tracking of disease outcomes as a resource to study the health effects of air pollution. This represents an efficient approach that avoids the need to generate a separate expensive study to conduct this work.
Use of CKB in this way requires improvements to existing air pollution data. As in many other large scale epidemiological studies, CKB did not directly measure actual air pollution levels individually, but relied on participants to report information on the type of fuel they use for cooking or heating and how often, or how close to a main road they live. Since individuals spend a varying amount of time in different locations doing various activities, this may be inaccurate measure of individual air pollution. The ideal would be to measure in real time the pollutant concentrations in the air breathed by each person individually. However, this will be impractical in a study of 0.5 million participants, so the challenge is to achieve estimates of exposure in a cost-effective manner. This proposal represents a pilot project to test and assess different methods of measuring individual exposure to household and ambient air pollution.
In this project we will ask 300 CKB participants from 2 rural and 1 urban regions to carry a small wearable monitor with them to record particle pollutant concentration for two 5 day periods in both warm and cool seasons of the year. In addition, we will ask them to note what activity (e.g. cooking, commuting) they are doing, the duration and the location, so that we can understand how much of their pollution exposure comes from indoor or outdoor environments. Because it could be difficult and expensive to ask each participant to wear a monitor, we will also test whether it is sufficient to estimate individual air pollution by using data from ground monitoring networks, supplemented by satellite remote sensing technology. Two of the many satellites orbiting Earth carry sensors that detect infrared light transmitted through the atmosphere, providing a measure of airborne particulate matter. Using information from satellites and ground monitors, we will create a more complete map of air pollution. We will test and optimise this new approach in Suzhou, an urban CKB site that already has good coverage of ground-based pollution monitoring data. Based on the residential addresses of study participants, we can use this air pollution map to estimate an individual's ambient exposure level. We will use this information to carry out an analysis to investigate the health effects of air pollution in Suzhou participants.
This proposal will provide important new understanding and experience needed to plan a larger project involving all 0.5 million participants in CKB. Ultimately we aim to collect reliable exposure and disease outcome data to accurately understand the impact of air pollution on health in China.
Use of CKB in this way requires improvements to existing air pollution data. As in many other large scale epidemiological studies, CKB did not directly measure actual air pollution levels individually, but relied on participants to report information on the type of fuel they use for cooking or heating and how often, or how close to a main road they live. Since individuals spend a varying amount of time in different locations doing various activities, this may be inaccurate measure of individual air pollution. The ideal would be to measure in real time the pollutant concentrations in the air breathed by each person individually. However, this will be impractical in a study of 0.5 million participants, so the challenge is to achieve estimates of exposure in a cost-effective manner. This proposal represents a pilot project to test and assess different methods of measuring individual exposure to household and ambient air pollution.
In this project we will ask 300 CKB participants from 2 rural and 1 urban regions to carry a small wearable monitor with them to record particle pollutant concentration for two 5 day periods in both warm and cool seasons of the year. In addition, we will ask them to note what activity (e.g. cooking, commuting) they are doing, the duration and the location, so that we can understand how much of their pollution exposure comes from indoor or outdoor environments. Because it could be difficult and expensive to ask each participant to wear a monitor, we will also test whether it is sufficient to estimate individual air pollution by using data from ground monitoring networks, supplemented by satellite remote sensing technology. Two of the many satellites orbiting Earth carry sensors that detect infrared light transmitted through the atmosphere, providing a measure of airborne particulate matter. Using information from satellites and ground monitors, we will create a more complete map of air pollution. We will test and optimise this new approach in Suzhou, an urban CKB site that already has good coverage of ground-based pollution monitoring data. Based on the residential addresses of study participants, we can use this air pollution map to estimate an individual's ambient exposure level. We will use this information to carry out an analysis to investigate the health effects of air pollution in Suzhou participants.
This proposal will provide important new understanding and experience needed to plan a larger project involving all 0.5 million participants in CKB. Ultimately we aim to collect reliable exposure and disease outcome data to accurately understand the impact of air pollution on health in China.
Technical Summary
Air pollution (comprising household [HAP] and ambient air pollution [AAP]) is a major cause of premature death globally. In China and other low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), HAP has decreased gradually, but AAP has increased significantly from rapid industrialisation and urbanisation. Existing estimates of air pollution on health risk in LMICs have been extrapolated from studies in Western populations where the source and patterns of exposures differ substantially. Reliable of health effects of air population should include changing exposure patterns (from HAP to AAP) and time delay from exposure to disease onset, which will be best addressed by large prospective cohorts with detailed lifestyle (e.g. smoking), high quality air pollution data and linkage to disease outcomes. Our long-term plan is to apply cutting-edge approaches to enhance exposure data already collected in 0.5M China Kadoorie Biobank (CKB) adults to assess the health effects of air pollution across 10 diverse urban and rural areas in China.
We propose a 2 year collaborative feasibility study to evaluate enhancements in exposure assessment before scaling up across all of CKB. We will measure real-time ambient and household fine particulate (PM2.5) and carbon monoxide, using wearable and static devices, for 300 CKB participants from 3 (2 rural, 1 urban) regions, each for two 5-day periods at different times of the year. We will develop methods to assign individual ambient PM2.5 levels in 1 urban region (Suzhou) by linking geocodes of residential addresses to an exposure model constructed using national air monitoring and satellite remote sensing data. Such data will be related through individual-based time-series analyses to a range of disease outcomes to yield initial evidence about health risks of air pollution. Data collected and experience gained should provide the basis for a large-scale and long-term research programme into the hazards of air pollution in China and other LMICs.
We propose a 2 year collaborative feasibility study to evaluate enhancements in exposure assessment before scaling up across all of CKB. We will measure real-time ambient and household fine particulate (PM2.5) and carbon monoxide, using wearable and static devices, for 300 CKB participants from 3 (2 rural, 1 urban) regions, each for two 5-day periods at different times of the year. We will develop methods to assign individual ambient PM2.5 levels in 1 urban region (Suzhou) by linking geocodes of residential addresses to an exposure model constructed using national air monitoring and satellite remote sensing data. Such data will be related through individual-based time-series analyses to a range of disease outcomes to yield initial evidence about health risks of air pollution. Data collected and experience gained should provide the basis for a large-scale and long-term research programme into the hazards of air pollution in China and other LMICs.
Planned Impact
This proposal builds upon a long-standing collaboration between Oxford University and China, contributing greatly towards Chinese research capacity building, helping to develop and enhance expertise in population health in China. This project will foster and strengthen exchanges between the two countries, involving international experts with a demonstrated commitment to sharing knowledge and skills. The collaboration will lead to important findings, with clinical and public health relevance, and future benefits to the health and well-being of the Chinese population (as well as of other populations).
Who will benefit from this research?
The key beneficiaries are:
- Public, with improved awareness of health consequences of air pollution, may lead to behavioural changes (e.g. cooking habits, improved ventilation, and use of clean fuel); and with improvements in environmental policy (see below), will experience reduced morbidity and mortality associated with house and ambient air pollution.
- Environmental policy makers, who can exploit reliable estimates of air pollution and risk of disease from CKB to guide national policy actions for reducing the disease burden from air pollution.
- Scientists, who will acquire new data to calibrate questionnaire data to proxy objective measures of air pollution, which can be used in other large epidemiological studies to provide reliable estimates of health associated with air pollution.
How will they benefit?
China's 2030 Sustainable Development Goals include reducing non-communicable disease mortality by a third, and monitoring the changes over time. However, there is major evidence gap regarding current and future air pollution associated disease burden. In recent years, various estimates have been reported about the number of deaths attributed to ambient air pollution (AAP) in China, which varied by 5-fold from <0.3 million to 1.5 million annually. For household air pollution (HAP), current estimates for China are mainly based on extrapolation of results from studies conducted in previous decades where patterns and magnitude of exposure differed substantially from those in recent decades or on extrapolations from studies conducted in Western populations.
Chinese policymakers in charge of environmental protection and health are aware of the evidence gap and the need to generate nationwide reliable estimates of exposures and health outcomes associated with the exposures. Our study has the unique potential to provide reliable long-term quantitative estimates of mortality and morbidity burdens associated with exposure to HAP and AAP in China. The information generated will help policymakers to assess the magnitude of problem and where to target their policy actions for reducing the disease burden more effectively. By demonstrating reliably the risks associated with exposure to HAP and AAP, it will encourage positive behavioural changes at the individual level to reduce exposure to HAP (e.g. cooking habits, improved ventilation and use of clean fuel).
The 2015 World Health Assembly called for further evidence with enhancement in collection and utilisation of air pollution exposure data (which are particularly lacking in low- and middle-income countries). By applying and developing various novel techniques and analytic methods for improved exposure assessment, our study will make a significant contribution to fulfil the goal. It will also contribute importantly to the research community by demonstrating the great added values and cost saving of incorporating individual air pollution exposure measures in the context of an existing large-scale prospective cohort study. It will also generate new and rich dataset to enable scientists from China and elsewhere to make novel discoveries, benefiting the human health globally.
Please refer to Pathway to Impact for more detailed on impact of our research on global communities including various Chinese stakeholders.
Who will benefit from this research?
The key beneficiaries are:
- Public, with improved awareness of health consequences of air pollution, may lead to behavioural changes (e.g. cooking habits, improved ventilation, and use of clean fuel); and with improvements in environmental policy (see below), will experience reduced morbidity and mortality associated with house and ambient air pollution.
- Environmental policy makers, who can exploit reliable estimates of air pollution and risk of disease from CKB to guide national policy actions for reducing the disease burden from air pollution.
- Scientists, who will acquire new data to calibrate questionnaire data to proxy objective measures of air pollution, which can be used in other large epidemiological studies to provide reliable estimates of health associated with air pollution.
How will they benefit?
China's 2030 Sustainable Development Goals include reducing non-communicable disease mortality by a third, and monitoring the changes over time. However, there is major evidence gap regarding current and future air pollution associated disease burden. In recent years, various estimates have been reported about the number of deaths attributed to ambient air pollution (AAP) in China, which varied by 5-fold from <0.3 million to 1.5 million annually. For household air pollution (HAP), current estimates for China are mainly based on extrapolation of results from studies conducted in previous decades where patterns and magnitude of exposure differed substantially from those in recent decades or on extrapolations from studies conducted in Western populations.
Chinese policymakers in charge of environmental protection and health are aware of the evidence gap and the need to generate nationwide reliable estimates of exposures and health outcomes associated with the exposures. Our study has the unique potential to provide reliable long-term quantitative estimates of mortality and morbidity burdens associated with exposure to HAP and AAP in China. The information generated will help policymakers to assess the magnitude of problem and where to target their policy actions for reducing the disease burden more effectively. By demonstrating reliably the risks associated with exposure to HAP and AAP, it will encourage positive behavioural changes at the individual level to reduce exposure to HAP (e.g. cooking habits, improved ventilation and use of clean fuel).
The 2015 World Health Assembly called for further evidence with enhancement in collection and utilisation of air pollution exposure data (which are particularly lacking in low- and middle-income countries). By applying and developing various novel techniques and analytic methods for improved exposure assessment, our study will make a significant contribution to fulfil the goal. It will also contribute importantly to the research community by demonstrating the great added values and cost saving of incorporating individual air pollution exposure measures in the context of an existing large-scale prospective cohort study. It will also generate new and rich dataset to enable scientists from China and elsewhere to make novel discoveries, benefiting the human health globally.
Please refer to Pathway to Impact for more detailed on impact of our research on global communities including various Chinese stakeholders.
Organisations
- University of Oxford (Lead Research Organisation)
- Natural Environment Research Council (Co-funder)
- University of Hong Kong (Collaboration)
- Chinese University of Hong Kong (Collaboration)
- Fudan University (Collaboration)
- Chinese University of Hong Kong (Project Partner)
- University of Bristol (Project Partner)
- Imperial College London (Project Partner)
- National Institutes of Health (Project Partner)
Publications
Chan KH
(2023)
Characterising personal, household, and community PM2.5 exposure in one urban and two rural communities in China.
in The Science of the total environment
Lam KBH
(2018)
Stable or fluctuating temperatures in winter: which is worse for your lungs?
in Thorax
Description | The GCRF award has resulted in important publications that examined the health effects of ambient and household air pollution, where key evidence from low- and middle-income countries has been missing, especially in the area of household air pollution where no large prospective studies have been conducted prior to the award. Importantly, for the first time using direct data from China and not extrapolating from Western countries we demonstrated that household air pollution due to the use of coal or wood for cooking/heating is associated with higher mortality risk, especially cardiovascular disease. However, the association with respiratory diseases, notably chronic obstructive pulmonary disease has been weaker than previously estimated. We also found the association with liver diseases, which has not been reported previously. The award also supported a pilot study to examine the feasibility of assessing personal exposure to air pollution in rural and urban Chinese settings. We have also organised an international symposium and attended many others to foster new collaborations to develop better research studies in a much larger scale to study the health effects of air pollution in low-resource settings, especially in China. Publication of the findings of the pilot study is complete: Regional and seasonal Variations in household and personal exposures to air pollution in one urban and two rural Chinese communities: a pilot study to collect time-resolved data using static and wearable devices. Environ Int. 2020; 146: 106217. doi:1 0.1016/j.envint.2020.106217[online ahead of print] |
Exploitation Route | Findings have informed a proposed broader programme of research with project partners. "Living environments and health in 1 million adults across China " The main aim of this collaborative research is to provide reliable estimates on the contribution of exposures in the living environment (i.e. air pollution, temperature, and the built-environment) to major non-communicable diseases (NCDs) by carefully documenting and quantifying the diverse environmental exposure profiles typical in LMICs. Funding is still being sought for this work. The design of the 3rd resurvey China Kadoorie Biobank questionnaire was informed by the experience gained during the MRC GCRF-funded CKB-Air pilot study, with additional questions on household cooking and heating fuel use such that more refined air pollution exposure profile of the participants may be obtained. Finding of Increased risk of cadiovascular mortality associated with the use of coal or wood for cooking/heating may result in wider environmental and public health intervention to change predominent fuel use in parts of China and other LMICS. |
Sectors | Environment Healthcare |
Description | The award has attempted to address multiple Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), namely 3 (Good health and well-being), 7 (Affordable and clean energy), 10 (Reduced inequalities), and 11 (Sustainable cities and communities) by describing the inequalities in fuel use across rural and urban areas of China and researching on the health effect due to the use of polluting energy sources and the potential benefit of ventilation and switching to cleaner fuels. The findings of our research will inform the design of sustainable communities through the understanding of the dwelling conditions and activity patterns of individuals. The impact of the award is not restricted to China but is also applicable to other low-and middle-income countries, as well as the high-income countries. Most previous studies on household air pollution focused on the health effects of females as they were more likely to be exposed to solid fuel smoke when they were cooking. We made an effort to over-sample male participants in the pilot study as household air pollution affects every member in the household but the exposure data among males have been lacking. The findings generated from this award will therefore be applicable to people of both genders. |
First Year Of Impact | 2019 |
Sector | Environment,Healthcare |
Impact Types | Policy & public services |
Title | China Kadoorie Biobank - Research Database |
Description | China Kadoorie Biobank (CKB) is a blood-based prospective cohort study of 512,000 adults, recruited from 10 diverse areas across China (during 2004-08), with extensive data collection at baseline and subsequent resurveys and long-term storage of biological samples. These exposure and outcome data are complemented by separately funded genotyping (currently for 102,000 participants), whole genome sequencing, and conventional and multi-omics assays for nested case-control studies of specific diseases. |
Type Of Material | Database/Collection of data |
Year Produced | 2015 |
Provided To Others? | Yes |
Impact | Group staff and collaborating institution have published over 400 papers using the CKB database. Since opening CKB data up for open access in September 2015, over 800 researchers have registered on the CKB Data Access System. By February 2023 over 200 datasets had been approved and delivers to external collaborators and open access researchers. |
URL | https://www.ckbiobank.org/site/Data+Access |
Description | Assessing health risks associated with exposure to household and ambient air pollution in rural and urban China |
Organisation | Fudan University |
Department | School of Public Health |
Country | China |
Sector | Academic/University |
PI Contribution | Development and execution of the project "Assessing health risks associated with exposure to household and ambient air pollution in rural and urban China" |
Collaborator Contribution | Provision of access to additional relevant datasets on air pollution and analytical support. |
Impact | Field data collected. Visiting researcher visiting oxford for data integration and analysis. |
Start Year | 2017 |
Description | China Kadoorie Built Environment Urban Morphometric Platform |
Organisation | University of Hong Kong |
Country | Hong Kong |
Sector | Academic/University |
PI Contribution | Co-development of CKBUMP: China Kadoorie Built Environment Urban Morphometric Platform. To investigate a range of environmental exposures and their impact on health. CKB to provide health outcomes from Biobank participants. |
Collaborator Contribution | Co-development of CKBUMP: China Kadoorie Built Environment Urban Morphometric Platform. To investigate a range of environmental exposures and their impact on health. HK to provide expertise in geocoding and development of environmental exposure metrics. |
Impact | Work programme being developed, funding being sought. |
Start Year | 2017 |
Description | Fudan University |
Organisation | Fudan University |
Country | China |
Sector | Academic/University |
PI Contribution | Development and execution of the project "Assessing health risks associated with exposure to household and ambient air pollution in rural and urban China" |
Collaborator Contribution | Provision of access to additional relevant datasets on air pollution and analytical support |
Impact | Field data collected, currently being analysed. |
Start Year | 2014 |
Description | Fudan University: The associations of air pollution and ambient temperature exposure with omics biomarkers and mortality and incidence of major chronic diseases |
Organisation | Fudan University |
Country | China |
Sector | Academic/University |
PI Contribution | Joint development of a project on household and ambient air pollution (HAP/AAP) and temperature variations. will investigate the associations of HAP/AAP and temperature variations with a wide range of biomarkers from proteomics, metabolomics, and blood biochemistry assays. Furthermore, we will assess the potential mediation roles of the above biomarkers between the association of HAP/AAP and temperature with mortality and incidence disease outcomes. Contribution methodological development and access to CKB Data. |
Collaborator Contribution | Joint development of a project on household and ambient air pollution (HAP/AAP) and temperature variations. will investigate the associations of HAP/AAP and temperature variations with a wide range of biomarkers from proteomics, metabolomics, and blood biochemistry assays. Furthermore, we will assess the potential mediation roles of the above biomarkers between the association of HAP/AAP and temperature with mortality and incidence disease outcomes. Contribution methodological development and access to local environmental exposure datasets . . |
Impact | Publications being drafted. |
Start Year | 2023 |
Description | Short-and long-term effects of outdoor pollution |
Organisation | Chinese University of Hong Kong |
Country | Hong Kong |
Sector | Academic/University |
PI Contribution | Development of a programme of collaborative research to examine both short- and long- term effects of outdoor air pollution (together with climate model and geocoding) on health outcomes. Individual socio-demographic factors, as well as climate-related factors and indoor air pollutants would also be examined as independent and interacting factors which contribute to health outcomes. |
Collaborator Contribution | Development of a programme of collaborative research to examine both short- and long- term effects of outdoor air pollution (together with climate model and geocoding) on health outcomes. Individual socio-demographic factors, as well as climate-related factors and indoor air pollutants would also be examined as independent and interacting factors which contribute to health outcomes. |
Impact | Development of project: Assessing health risks associated with exposure to household and ambient air pollution in rural and urban China |
Start Year | 2017 |
Description | Interviews for national and International News |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A press release, press conference or response to a media enquiry/interview |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Media (as a channel to the public) |
Results and Impact | responseded to approximately 20 separate requests for media interviews (inc Radio,TV and Print ) for an expert reflection of the COVID Epidemic in Europe (for Chinese media) and also on the epidemiology of the COVID 19 within China (for a more global audience). |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2021,2022 |
Description | Media Interview |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A magazine, newsletter or online publication |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | Interview for and article on Exposure to solid fuel for cooking linked to lung cancer mortality risk |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
URL | https://www.healio.com/news/pulmonology/20221201/exposure-to-solid-fuel-for-cooking-linked-to-lung-c... |
Description | Media Interviews on Air pollution |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A press release, press conference or response to a media enquiry/interview |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | interview with That's TV South (UK) on study findings on the impact of household air pollution on eye disease - for a news programme; interview with NTV Broadcasting Company (Russia) on study findings on the impact of household air pollution on eye disease - for a popular science education programme |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2021 |
Description | Press covereage for research paper on solid fuel use and cardiovascular disease in China |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A press release, press conference or response to a media enquiry/interview |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Media (as a channel to the public) |
Results and Impact | Global Press release and significant worldwide media coverage (Print and online) for the following paper: "Solid Fuel Use and Risks of Respiratory Diseases: A Cohort Study of 280,000 Chinese Never-Smokers". Am J Respir Crit Care Med 2019; 199(3):352-361 |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |
Description | Research paper press releases x 7 Covering Tobacco Control; Alcohol Consumption and Disease Risk; Blood Proteins and Heart Disease Drug Targets; Folic Acid and Stroke; Blood Proteins and Obesity Treatment Targets; Genotyping and Populations Characteristics in CKB |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A press release, press conference or response to a media enquiry/interview |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Media (as a channel to the public) |
Results and Impact | Seven separate press releases prepared and circulated via central Oxford Press office, Journal Press Offices , OxPop and CKB Websites during 2023 covering a range of topics to accompany major publication outputs |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2023 |
URL | https://www.ckbiobank.org/news-1 |
Description | Series of interviews in for National and International Press on Face Mask Usage |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A magazine, newsletter or online publication |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | Kahung (Peter Chan) Expert opinion saought and provided: 21st May 2020: Nature. Topic: How coronavirus lockdowns stopped flu in its tracks. https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-020-01538-8 (interviewed but no direct quote, paper cited) 23rd April: The Times. Topic: How to make your own facemask at home - and the truth about them. https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/how-to-make-your-own-facemask-at-home-and-the-truth-about-them-x2b5mq98k 2nd/3rd April 2020 (can't remember exactly): BBC News. Topic (roughly): Changing guidelines on mask use - issues around proper mask use across population and related policy recommendations. No links available, but a friend sent me a screen shot taken during the interview, if you need any supporting evidence that is (see attached). 3rd April 2020: The Times. Topic: Coronavirus: how to wear a facemask properly and other advice. https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/coronavirus-how-to-wear-a-facemask-properly-and-other-advice-fthrj6gdv 1st April 2020: The Guardian. Topic: WHO considers changing guidance on wearing face masks https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/apr/01/all-uk-hospital-staff-and-patients-should-wear-masks-says-doctors-group Interviews contributed to the debate on facemask usage and may have helped persuade policymaker to adopt mask usage internationally. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2020 |
Description | Smoking Phewas Study |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A press release, press conference or response to a media enquiry/interview |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | Press release jointly produced with Lancet Public Health representatives in China to disseminate a paper on the effects of smoking on the Chinese population. "This was the first paper to systematically assess the impact of smoking on an extensive range of diseases within the same population. The researchers used data from the China Kadoorie Biobank to comprehensively assess the health effects of tobacco smoking on death and hospitalisation from a range of diseases and to examine the benefit of smoking cessation. " Smoking was found to increase the risks of 56 diseases in Chinese Adults. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
URL | https://www.ckbiobank.org/news/smoking-increases-the-risks-of-56-diseases-in-chinese-adults |
Description | The 1st International High-Level Symposium on Toxicology and Health of Air Pollution. |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | Workshop brought together key researchers and practitioners and policy makers to share later research findings and policy recommendations linking environmental exposures to pollution and health outcomes. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |