Exhaust Fumes

Exhaust Fumes Are Hazardous to Your Health

No matter how you choose to travel—whether by car, bus, bike, or foot—one major fact of life is that we all deal with exhaust emissions on an almost constant basis. What many people don’t realize is the serious health effects that long-term exposure to exhaust fumes can have on the human body.

Not only can this exposure cause respiratory problems, eye issues, and headaches, inhalation of carbon monoxide can also cause severe issues with organs such as the heart and effect the flow of bone marrow—definitely something you want to stop and think about next time you notice your or someone else’s vehicle emitting visible exhaust fumes.

What Causes Exhaust Fumes?

Exhaust fumes are caused by the burning of fossil fuels as well as defects within the internal combustion engine. Vehicles don’t typically use up all of the gasoline that gets put in their tanks. If the engine’s ignition stroke doesn’t take place at a specific time, the power behind it is too weak, meaning some of the gas is not used and is removed from the vehicle as exhaust.

Diesel engines emit fumes that are a mixture of gases, vapors, liquid aerosols, and particle substances, containing combustion products such as carbon (soot), nitrogen, water, nitrogen dioxide, sulfur dioxide, aldehydes, and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons.

How Exhaust Affects Your Health

It’s been well known for a long time that exhaust fumes cause the greenhouse effect. This not only contributes to global warming, it also can have serious effects on your health. According to the EPA, exhaust fumes have been known to create ozone close to the earth’s surface. Too much exposure to exhaust fumes can cause or worsen irritation or illness to the eyes and the respiratory tract. Longtime exposure to diesel fumes can also cause or worsen respiratory illnesses and might even increase the risk of lung cancer. Pollution caused by exhaust fumes has been linked to heart disease and might cause heart attacks. Some studies have shown that the fine particles found in air pollution (largely attributed to emissions of car exhaust) produce the same amount of change in the hardening of the arteries as smoking three to four cigarettes per day.  

Exposure to diesel exhaust fumes could also possibly have an effect on the regulation of bone-marrow blood flow in certain segments of the population, at least according to an animal model. According to one study, males, postmenopausal women, and the elderly are more likely to be subjected to their bone-marrow blood flow being compromised due to pollutant particles found in diesel exhaust. Exposure to exhaust fumes has also been found to trigger headaches, especially in those prone to migraines. Studies have shown that exhaust pollution may even alter brain function if exposed to the fumes for an extended period of time.

How to Prevent Health Problems Due to Exhaust Fumes

Just because the world is full of pollution caused by exhaust fumes doesn’t mean that you have to contribute to it. Electric cars that don’t require gas in order to run do not produce exhaust emissions. Likewise, walking or riding a bike is a good way to prevent any contribution to exhaust pollution. If you must drive a gasoline-fueled car, there are some preventative measures you can take in order to ensure you do not contribute as much to the greenhouse effect or your own health problems. Make sure your exhaust pipe is up to standard and doesn’t have any leaks in it. If you notice smoke coming from your tailpipe, take your car in for a checkup. Whenever you start your car while parked inside the garage, make sure your garage door is open in order to ventilate the area. This will protect you from inhaling unnecessary harmful particles. Although it is unlikely we can undo the damage done to the earth already, we can take action to prevent any further harm to the planet and our bodies.

Chris Keenan is a green and general blog writer. He writes for many sites including Precision Garage Door. Chris also maintains a personal house and garden blog.