Health effects of ozone

Lippmann, M. (1989). Health effects of ozone. A critical review. J. Air PoUut. Control Assoc. 39, 672-695. 

The legal implications emerging from the concept of hormesis remain to be more fully explored. However, the concept of hormesis has begun to be addressed by legal scholars (74). Of particular interest has been an exploration of the potential means to incorporate the concept of pollutant-induced beneficial effects in the risk assessment and cost-benefit process. Within this general framework, the District Court forced the EPA to recognize the beneficial effects of ozone pollution on the risk of UV-induced skin cancer in its overall assessment of the health effects of ozone (75, 76). 

Ozone is a strong oxidant and it can be detrimental to human health at elevated concentrations in the ambient air. Adverse health effects, such as impaired lung function, occur in the population when exposed for several hours at ozone concentrations of 120 ppb. Sensitive people show health effects at substantially lower concentrations. The guidline of the World Health Organization (WHO) for protection of human health effects of ozone in ambient air is approximately 60 ppb for 8 hr. It has been reported that the elevated concentration of ozone for over 70 million people living in the United States still exceeded the National Ambient Air Quality standard (80 ppb for 8 hr) in 1998 despite considerable regulatory efforts to reduce air pollution. 

By mo ing from a one-hour to an eight-hour measurement, the standtird will better reflect the real-world effects of ozone on human health... 

Convincing new information on the health effects of oxidant exposure has emerged from controlled studies on humans, from which tentative dose-response curves have been constructed. These data are reviewed in Chapter 9, with the types of experimental facilities now available for such measurements. The new data show reduced pulmonary function in healthy smokers and nonsmokers after exposure to ozone at 0.37 ppm and higher for 2 h. The federal standard is 0.08 ppm for a I-h exposure.) Other gases and aerosols found in an urban atmosphere were not present in these experiments. 

Bates, D., and M. Hazucha. The short-term effects of ozone on the human lung, pp. 507-540. In National Research Council. Assembly of Life Sciences. Proceedings of the Conference on Health Effects of Air Pollutants, October 3-5, 1973. 

Evans, M. J., W. Mayr, R. F. Bils, and C. G. Loosli. Effects of ozone on cell re newal in pulmonary alveoli of aging mice. Arch. Environ. Health 22 450-453, 1971... 

Hackney, J. D., W. S. Unn, D. C. Uw. S. K. Karuza, H. Greenberg, R. D. Buckley, and E. E. Pedersen. Experimental studies on human health effects of air pollutants. III. Two-hour exposure to ozone alone and in combiiuition with other pollutant gases. Arch. Environ. Health 30 385-390, 1975. 

Nasr, A. N. M., B. D. Dinman, and I. A. Bernstein. II. Effect of ozone inhalation on nadide phosphate levels in tracheal mucosa. Arch. Environ. Health 22 545-550. 1971. 

The data base on health effects of photochemical oxidants and ozone was reviewed by the Subcommittee on Ozone and Other Photochemical Oxidants in a report prepared in September 1974 for the Committee on Public Works, U.S. Senate.The following discussion repeats some of the material in that report, to exemplify the need for further work, including controlled human studies. 

Kagawa, J., and T. Toyama. Effects of ozone and brief exercise on specific airway conductance in man. Arch. Environ. Health 30 36-39, 1975. 

Enhanced susceptibility to respiratory exposure to infectious agents is of considerable potential public-health significance. This has been reported to occur in mice exposed to ozone at as low as 0.08 ppm, the lowest reported effect concentration in laboratory animal studies. It seems essential, therefore, to continue and expand research on the effect of ozone and other photochemical oxidants on physiologic protective mechanisms of the lung. Appropriate dose-response studies should be included to confirm or establish the exposure concentration-time relationships that result in increased susceptibility to inhaled microorganisms, and studies of the cellular responses and mechanisms should be conducted with a view to providing methods that are applicable to epidemi-ol( c studies in oxidant-exposed human populations. 

Difunctional oxygenated organic compounds health effects of, 4 volatility of, 86 Diolefins, 57-58,60 aerosols from, 4, 70-72,83, 88.675 in automotive exhahst, 101 DNA (deoxyribonudeic add), effect of ozone exposure on, 351-52, 363 Dose-response relationship, for exposure to ozone... 

Measured total column ozone has fallen between about 1970 and 1994. Ultraviolet irradiation increases at the surface of the earth due to ozone depletion should peak at about 15% in midlatitudes. The incidence of harmful health effects of UV radiation can be expected to rise, eventually, at midlatitudes. Public health action is still necessary to reduce sun exposure, increase protection against the sun, and develop clear policies on the action that should be taken on early detection and treatment of skin cancers (Armstrong, 1997). 

In order to evaluate the toxicity of ozonation byproducts, the health effects of specific, unidentified substances (byproducts) need to be determined for each target organism (human, animals, fish, etc). The often observed lack of substantial information on toxicity can in part be attributed to the lack of appropriate testing methods. Since identifying all the substances which compose the TOC of a ground-, drinking- or waste water can rarely be... 

Fiedler, N., Laumbach, R., Kelly-McNeil, K., Lioy, P., Fan, Z.H., Zhang, J.F., Ottenweller, J., Oilman-Sttickland, P. and Kipen, H. (2005) Health effects of a mixture of indoor air volatile organics, their ozone oxidation products, and stress. Environmental Health Perspectives, 113 (11), 1542-8. 

D.L. Dungworth, Short-term effects of ozone on lungs of rats, mice and monkeys. Environ. Health Perspect. 16 179, 1976. 

At still greater dilutions than the foregoing, the effect of ozone has been repeatedly proved to be beneficial. In cases of anaemia it appears to stimulate the multiplication of blood corpuscles, to increase the appetite, and to raise the general standard of health of the sufferer. Asthma, bronchitis, pleurisy, and pneumonia have likewise been relieved by inhalation of ozonised air, and it is not impossible that similar treatment may prove beneficial to consumptives. 

By mo -ing from a one-hour to an eiglit-hour nictisurcnient. tlie stmidard will better reflect the real-world effects of ozone on hunimi health By focusing on concentration of ozone, the new standard will do more tlian merely designate higli-pollution areas as out of compliance - for the first time, it will also respond to health concenis based on how much an area is out of compliance... 

Pryor WA, Stanley JP, Blair E, Cullen GB. Autoxidation of polyunsaturated fatty acids. Part I. Effect of ozone on the autoxidation of neat methyl Unoleate and methyl linolenate. Arch. Environ. Health 1976 31 201. 

US Environmental Protection Agency (US EPA) has surveyed 10 operating water utilities for the presence of 22 halogenated disinfection by-products in chlorine-treated water (31). Table 4 presents the frequency and range of concentrations of those by-products of greatest concern. Table 5 summarizes the current knowledge of health effects of selected chlorination by-products. Researchers are continuously studying the by-products associated with ozonation. To date, however, extensive studies of by-products of treatment with ozone, chloramination, and chlorine dioxide have not been conducted. 

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