If the Main Title doesn’t make anyone of you sad enough, just read this post provided by a resident of Putraheights. The web forum is www.putraheights.com/forum.
Ok Let me share with you all the research he has made and i am grateful that Mr HO has come forward to share his research. We cannot wait any longer anymore ,our weather is getting bad to worse and only now we are aware of the Air quality had turn out to be Gas , toxic and dusts . Where is our FREE and PURE O2?
Do we need Oxygen Bar now?
His name is Mr Ho Min Khang , a resident of Putraheights and we were quite shocked to hear his medical record when his supporting documents had now classified him as a patient suffering from Smoker Lung , apparently he never smoke any tobacco at all. His discovery was a bit too late after 2 years living in an Environment where there was no Warning System to alert anyone.
Let me post all his materials here so that more public will take this fight seriously.
here goes….
Goh,
Hope this will be useful to for you to put on your blog ….
I have compile the following proof of haze’s health impact:
1. The Monitoring of The Impact of Forest Fire on Public Health in
Malaysia, 2005
www.dph.gov.my/ncd/bulletin/April_June05/05.The%20Monitoring.pdf
2. The Impact of Fine Particles on Health, 2007
www.tekes.fi/julkaisut/Fine_impact_ofthe_fineparticles_on_health.pdf
3. Polluted Cities – The air children breathe ( Look at our air quality compare to the first world countries )
www.who.int/ceh/publications/11airpollution.pdf
4. Woodsmoke Health Effects, 2007
ehs.sph.berkeley.edu/krsmith/publications/2006%20pubs/JIT%20Woodsmoke2.pdf
www.ecy.wa.gov/pubs/92046.pdf
Here are more:
www.pjoes.com/pdf/7.5/273-277.pdf
www.dph.gov.my/ncd/Bulletin/July_Sept04/05.The%20relationship.pdf
http://www.environment.gov.au/atmosphere/airquality/publications/biomass.html
The following are extracted from http://www.allergymanagement.com/hazefaq.htm
What are the pollutants in the SE Asian smoke-haze?
The major pollutants are associated with forest fires:
1. fine particulate matter: this is mainly ash and dust from the
burning of green vegetation and wood. Incomplete combustion may
produce irritant smoke. Complex organic compounds like polycyclic
aromatic hydrocarbons which may be irritant or carcinogenic (i.e.
cause cancer) may also be produced.
2. carbon monoxide: poisonous gas occurring because of incomplete
burning. In a city environment, the source of carbon monoxide
pollution usually comes from vehicles.
nitrogen dioxide: this is produced from atmospheric nitrogen when coal
or wood is burnt.
3. carbon dioxide: results from combustion of wood and coal are burnt.
In high quantities (more than 5000 ppm), it would present a danger.
The World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) estimates that six months of
fires in Indonesia could produce release more carbon dioxide than all
the cars and power plants in Western Europe could do in one year.
What are the common illnesses caused by the haze?
There are six major haze-related illnesses which Singapore doctors
have identified: acute bronchitis, respiratory infections, acute
rhinitis or running nose, asthma, bronchitis and eczema or skin
rashes. Other conditions include eye irritations. Some of the symptoms
are flu-like. Those with heart problems may require additional
medication. In a haze situation, clinic and hospital attendances for
these diseases tend to rise dramatically. This is normal, and the
public should not be alarmed.
In the US, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) recognizes that
many scientific studies have linked fine particulate matter with a
series of health problems, including:
- premature death;
- respiratory-related hospital admissions and emergency room visits;
- aggravated asthma;
- acute respiratory symptoms, including aggravated coughing and
difficult or painful breathing;
- chronic bronchitis;
- decreased lung function that can be experienced as shortness of breath;
- work and school absences.
Who are most at risk from the haze?
Those most at risk include:
- the elderly: US studies estimate that tens of thousands of elderly
people die prematurely each year from exposure to ambient levels of
fine particles. Many of the hospital admissions related to fine
particle pollution are elderly people with lung or heart diseases.
- those with pre-existing heart or lung diseases: individuals with
heart disease, emphysema, asthma and chronic bronchitis can be
adversely affected, requiring additional medical treatment. US studies
have associated inhaling fine particulate matter with increased
hospital admissions, emergency room visits and premature death among
sensitive populations.
- children: because children’s respiratory systems are still
developing, they are mores susceptible than healthy adults. US studies
have associated exposure to fine particles among children with
increased frequency of childhood illnesses (which may affect the
future development of healthy lungs), reduced lung function, increased
respiratory symptoms, aggravated coughing and difficulty of pain in
breathing.
- asthmatics and asthmatic children: asthma is becoming more serious
in Singapore (and around the world), being the seventh highest
contributor to deaths (Source: Ministry of Health). In Singapore, one
in about 5 children have asthma. Breathing fine particles can
aggravate asthma, resulting in more medical treatment and hospital
visits.
At home, will normal air-con filters be enough?
No, because the air-con filters are too porous to be effective against
the haze. You can fit ENV-approved filters in the air-con. However,
your air-con airflow will drop because of the filter, and your room
may not be as cool. Also, these filters tend to be lower-grade, which
does trap haze-dust, but with lower efficiency than medical-grade air
cleaners.
This is because air-con motors are not designed to pull large volumes
of air through dense medical-grade filters. So, any filter to be
retrofitted has to work by electrostatic means, which means that their
starting efficiency is low compared to medical-grade True HEPA
filters, and their operating efficiency is even much lower, as the
filters degrade. However, this is a good compromise if the family is
healthy, and the budget is tight.
Will air cleaners help?
Yes, the Ministry of Environment has tested selected air cleaners and
found them to be helpful against the haze. Different machines have
different efficiencies. You should get an ENV-approved air cleaner
with a built-in motor that circulate the air, and preferably one with
medical-grade True HEPA filters.
.
This is the best and most effective indoor option against the haze,
giving far superior results than other methods. True HEPA filters are
rated at a minimum of 99.97% efficiency at particles of size 0.3
microns (i.e. 3/10,000th of 1 mm; this is the particle size that is
most difficult to filter). The efficiency at sizes both larger and
smaller than 0.3 micron, is practically 100.00%. A True HEPA’s
efficiency does not degrade with use. This is why hospital operating
rooms and high-end industrial cleanrooms use True HEPA filters
exclusively as their main filters.
Thank You Mr Ho for sharing with us and we pray that you will overcome your health condition as soon as possible.
