Physiologically Based Assessment of Human Exposure to Urban Air Pollutants and Its Significance for Public Health Risk Evaluation

Exact measurements or modeling of human exposures to environmental pollutants are of crucial importance for a realistic evaluation of public health risks. Current concepts, however, often use assumptions that result in overly conservative assessments of public health risks. Too frequently the dose o...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Environmental health perspectives 1994-10, Vol.102 (suppl 4), p.101-106
Main Author: Vostal, Jaroslav J.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Air pollutants
Air Pollutants - adverse effects
Air Pollutants - analysis
Air pollution
Air quality
Chemical hazards
Dosage
Environmental agencies
Environmental Exposure - adverse effects
Environmental Exposure - analysis
Exercise
Humans
Models, Statistical
Ozone
Pollutants
Public health
Risk Assessment
Stochastic Processes
Symposium of Risk Assessment of Urban Air: Emissions, Exposure, Risk Identification, and Risk Quantitation. May 31-June 2, 1992 Stockholm, Sweden
Urban Health
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Summary:Exact measurements or modeling of human exposures to environmental pollutants are of crucial importance for a realistic evaluation of public health risks. Current concepts, however, often use assumptions that result in overly conservative assessments of public health risks. Too frequently the dose of the pollutant retained in the body is approximated by oversimplified predictions assuming that all that is inhaled remains in the organism, that pollutant concentrations in various microenvironments are identical to those recorded by remote monitors, that the residence indicates the site where people spend all their time, and that the urban population is continuously exposed to outdoor air for 24 hr/day and 70 years/lifetime. The review shows that in intermittent exposures only a fraction of inhaled toxicants remains in the body, that pollutant concentrations differ largely from one microenvironment to another, and that human activity patterns must be incorporated in every realistic exposure assessments. Specifically, the probability of being exposed to a short peak of ozone is predetermined in variable urban concentrations primarily by the coincidence of exercising outdoors at the time and site of elevated ozone levels. When combined with a physiologically based exposure evaluation, this probabilistic approach provides a scientifically sound estimate of actual occurrences of adverse exposures and a realistic assessment of potential health hazards.
ISSN:0091-6765
1552-9924
DOI:10.1289/ehp.94102s4101