Wildfires in the Los Angeles area have left 10 dead, thousands displaced and more than 10,000 buildings destroyed. As authorities struggle to control the fires, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has urged people in the area to monitor local air quality through their weather app or on airnow.gov.
Smoke from wildfires, a major source of air pollution, is associated with serious consequences health problems including heart attacks, strokes and lung diseases such as asthma.
There is also emerging research into mental health impacts that is beginning to reveal some connections that could help us better understand how these complex interactions affect our well-being, and provide potential solutions.
How does wildfire smoke affect the brain?
Air pollution affects the health of our brain and cognitive functions. Researchers have found that the fine particle pollution (PM2.5) released by forest fires is uniform more toxic than air pollution from other sources. One possible reason is the high content of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) mixed with varying levels of other known substances neurotoxic particles found in smoke, including heavy metals. These particles can reach the brain via the olfactory nerve and cross the blood-brain barrier, or modulate the nervous system, leading to encephalitis and oxidative stress.
Can wildfire smoke affect cognitive function?
Neuroinflammation caused by wildfire smoke increases… risk of development Alzheimer’s, dementia and Parkinson’s disease. Recent research from the Universities of Washington and Pennsylvania found that the chance of a new diagnosis of dementia increased by about 21% for every 1 microgram increase in the concentration of wildfire particles a person inhales, compared to a 3% increased risk for every 3 micrograms jumped in the air. non-wildfire particles.
Additional research from the University of New Mexico suggests that sudden increases in air pollution, such as those that occur during wildfires, trigger waves of inflammation in the hippocampus region of the brain, responsible for memory and learning. These can linger for more than an hour month after exposure.
That could explain why, in addition to several studies finding a link between smoke exposure and poorer concentration and decision-making skills while playing digital games And sport-Smoky days also appear to be associated with poorer academic performance.
In a 2020 study, economist and researcher Josh Graff Zivin of UC San Diego said investigated how smoky air affected students taking China’s university entrance exam for six years. Graff Zivin specifically studied the smoke produced by routine, controlled agricultural fires, removing potential fear associated with possible evacuations as a factor from the study.
His team found that when there was a significant increase in the number of fires upwind compared to downwind during the exam, students’ overall scores dropped by an average of 0.6 points. This drop in scores also somewhat reduced the likelihood that students would attend top universities. A US study from 2022, it was estimated that smoke exposure in 2016 reduced students’ future earnings by nearly $1.7 billion (or $111 per student).
“We don’t know exactly what happens to the brain” during heavy smoking days, says Graff Zivin. “But we know it’s bad.”
The cardiovascular effects of smoke inhalation can affect our body’s ability to properly oxygenate our brain. “Just having reduced lung function can lead to cognitive impairment,” he says.
But more research is needed to fully understand the extent to which smoky days affect cognitive performance. We also don’t yet fully understand the cumulative impact of smoke exposure over weeks or months each year, Graff Zivin adds.
What is the relationship between smoky days and depression?
It’s not clear exactly how smoke can physiologically affect the brain in ways that contribute to feelings of depression, but… researchers believe cognitive impairment – as Graff Zivin observed among exam students – can be a factor in low mood. Researchers also believe more and more brain inflammation plays a role in causing depressionwhich increases the possibility of that encephalitis caused by smoke from wildfires can contribute to mood disorders.
The stress and trauma of a wildfire can also affect mental health. Neuroscientist Dr. Jyoti Mishra of UC San Diego School of Medicine studied people exposed both directly and indirectly to the 2018 Camp Fire, a year after it tore through Butte County, California. Perhaps unsurprisingly, she found that those who faced significant personal loss or trauma during the fires showed the highest levels of PTSD, anxiety and depression. But even community members who were not directly affected by the fire reported increased neurocognitive problems and struggled with depression and anxiety.
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Part of the fear that people living near wildfires has has to do with “seeing landscapes and environments changing, and worrying about both the present and the future,” says Dr. Warren Dodd, associate professor at the university’s School of Public Health Sciences. of Waterloo.
Dodd has interviewed residents of Canada’s Northwest Territories who experienced a record fire season in 2014. They reported feelings of anger, stress and hopelessness about the threats posed by climate change.
In addition to the sadness of seeing the environment change rapidly – also known as solastalgia – the people Dodd interviewed reported that stopping their summer outdoor and rural activities to shelter indoors had negative effects on their mental health.
What can we do about the mental health effects of bushfires?
Mitigating the physiological effects of wildfire smoke on our brains involves many of the same behaviors as protecting the rest of our bodies from air pollution: using an air purifier indoors, deep cleaning living spaces to remove particulate matter that gets in, wearing a mask outdoors and minimizing unnecessary time outdoors.
When it comes to mitigating the psychological damage of smoky days, local authorities can take action. Providing community resources for free during wildfires is one way to help people alleviate some of the isolation and fear they experience while sheltering indoors. For example, Dodd notes that the City of Yellowknife waived fees for the indoor recreation center during the fire, allowing people to get some exercise and see their neighbors without having to go outside.
Resilience is important for communities to focus on, says Mishra – not just after a climate disaster, but also preventively. “When we studied the Campfire people, we found that there are certainly some traits, such as greater mindfulness and better physical activity, that can contribute to a sense of resilience,” she says. But the strength of people’s family and social ties was also an important factor in their resilience.
People who “feel supported and have a sense of community around you are the most protected when it comes to their mental health outcomes,” she says. A stronger sense of community can be an antidote to loneliness and a tool for climate resilience, Mishra notes. For those experiencing PTSD, therapy for underlying neurocognitive issues can aid recovery.
As always, prevention is key: reducing greenhouse gas emissions can slow global warming and help combat forest fires and their devastating, complex consequences.
Graff Zivin believes that governments should consider the economic consequences of reduced productivity and cognitive functions, and invest more heavily in wildfire prevention and forest health. A healthy forest maintained with prescribed burns can lead to less intense forest fires, he says. “We rarely talk about the value of healthy forests.”