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In London alone the impact of air pollution on our health has been widely reported, with terrible consequences for individuals with asthma and lung diseases. What do we know about these conditions and how can we help to reduce the negative impact of air pollution on them? Join Dr Rogers and Dr Brugha as they discuss their research on improving the air we breathe.
Breathing in dirt appears to be bad for you
Dr Rossa Brugha
(Academic Clinical Lecturer and Honorary Registrar in Paediatric Respiratory Medicine (Imperial College London))
Air pollution must be pretty bad because it was on the news, and actual politicians have started to do actual things to try and address it. As I don't have much of a choice about breathing I'm curious as to what I can actually do about this. Where should I breathe? How should I move around a city? What is the actual evidence that this affects me? In this talk I’ll try and answer these questions, using brightly coloured maps, overly reassuring population statistics about cycling, and photos of cells from inside my lungs that are full of black dirt. Fun times.
A sharp intake of breath!
Professor Louise Donnelly
(Professor of Respiratory Cell Biology, National Heart & Lung Institute, Imperial College London)
Lung diseases are a massive worldwide problem, and are set to get much worse over the coming years and decades. Air pollution, ‘self-pollution’ (e.g. cigarette smoking), other environmental factors and our genes all contribute to the problem. Although there are numerous medications available for treatment of lung diseases, huge numbers of patients still suffer and find it incredibly hard to breathe. Why is this?
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