Today in Science – Scientific American, 26 November 2024

Wildfire Smoke Linked to Increased Risk of Dementia

The particles that make up wildfire smoke may raise the risk of dementia even more than similar airborne pollutants from other sources.

JAMA Neurology, 25 November 2024

Wildfire Smoke Exposure and Incident Dementia

Wildfires, once rare and geographically confined, now regularly impact populations across the US. Anthropogenic climate change has increased wildfire frequency and intensity, eroding gains in air quality achieved under the Clean Air Act in theWestern US. Today,wildfiregenerated fine particulate matter less than 2.5 microns in diameter (PM2.5) accounts for over 70% of total PM2.5 exposure on poor air-quality days in California,6 where the 2018 wildfire season alone resulted in an estimated $149 billion in capital, health, and economic damages.