Experts link ‘epidemic’ of heart diseases to pollution

Nigeria Society of Physiotherapy said on World Physiotherapy Day that it was “worried” that movement for health in polluted environment might actually expose people to more health risks.“If we don’t care for our environment and continue to allow the sighting of industries next to residential areas, a time will come when the nation will have […]

Nigeria Society of Physiotherapy said on World Physiotherapy Day that it was “worried” that movement for health in polluted environment might actually expose people to more health risks.
“If we don’t care for our environment and continue to allow the sighting of industries next to residential areas, a time will come when the nation will have an epidemic of cardiovascular diseases,” said Dr Sam Ibeneme, senior lecturer at University of Nigeria, Nsukka’s (UNN’s) department of medical rehabilitation.
New research last year has suggested air pollutants pose similar risks for cardiovascular diseases regardless of place of residence or profession.
The research found that residents on a university campus in Enugu city were exposed to the same levels of risk of cardiovascular diseases as automobile spray painters, cement manufacturers and sawmill workers—professions that routinely caused air pollution and exposure to particles of impurity.
Researchers measured the level of C-reactive protein among staff of University of Nigeria, Nsukka, who formed the control group, and reside on same layout as Kenyatta Market, populated by spraying booths, sawmills, and timber traders.
They found university staff, supposedly away from the dust of work nearby, had elevated levels of C-reactive protein “equal to workers exposed to cement and dust,” said Dr Ibeneme, co-author of the study.
“These things are there because necessary agencies are not doing their jobs. If it can happen to staff of [the university], what about people who live side-by-side with these pollutants.”
“These people may take some precautions [to minimize dust inhalation] but staff will believe the air they breathe is free. We keep hearing ‘he slumped and died’ in Enugu for the past three weeks. This is why,” he said.
The study further found that sawmill workers were exposed to hypertension, with their blood pressure generally above 90mmHg, but cement and paint workers in the area had tendencies toward hypotension, with pressures less than 70mmHg.