Impact of Air Pollution on Women's Health

Abstract

Despite the growing interest in exploring environmental impacts on the health of men and women, more attention needs to focus on assessing the effect of air pollution on women's health. Current research efforts have observed possible correlations between exposures to environmental toxins and the development of disease and illness, including cancer, reproductive dysfunction, and immunologic and neurologic impairment. However, this research has not gone far enough for us to understand and explain the harmful effect of these toxins on women's health and the unique way women respond to toxic exposure. To address these gaps in knowledge, the Society for the Advancement of Women's Health Research recommends the following: an aggressive research commitment to identify and understand the unique way environmental toxins in the air interact in women; a commitment to research to understand the impact of chemical exposures in the workplace on the health of women; and an interagency review to evaluate the federal risk assessment policy and its impact on women's health.

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