Colorado Researchers Learn More About the Health Dangers of Wildfire Smoke

Wildfire smoke has been hanging over Colorado, making it hard for people to breathe and exercise outside. Fires near Pueblo, Leadville, and the Western Slope have filled the air with thick haze. People across the state are noticing the effects, and researchers are working hard to understand just how dangerous this smoke really is.

Haleigh Spitzbarth and Mitchell Khuri were running stairs at Red Rocks Amphitheatre on Tuesday when they felt the smoke's effects firsthand. Spitzbarth said she had been using an inhaler because of the poor air quality. Khuri described their workout as 'definitely the hardest' of the three times they had exercised there recently. Spitzbarth added that the smoke was so thick she could no longer see the Rocky Mountains from her workplace in Lone Tree.

Scientists are becoming more concerned about what wildfire smoke does to the human body. Colleen Reid is a researcher at the University of Colorado Boulder who studies environmental health. She says studies increasingly show that tiny particles in the air can harm many parts of the body, not just the lungs. These particles are so small that the body's normal defenses cannot stop them.

Our bodies are built to block larger particles. Nose hairs and mucus trap big particles and push them back out of the body. But the tiniest particles — called fine particulate matter — slip past those defenses. They travel deep into the lungs, where they cause inflammation and oxidative stress, which means they damage cells and tissues.

Once inside the lungs, these small particles can enter the bloodstream and travel to other organs. Reid said they have been found in the brains of people after death, in the placenta of pregnant women, and in many other parts of the body. Researchers have also found that these particles can affect the heart and blood vessels. They can even slow the growth of a baby before it is born.

Scientists are also finding that wildfire smoke may affect the brain over time. There is evidence that breathing in these particles can harm a person's ability to think and remember. In older adults, the buildup of particles in the brain may play a role in cognitive decline, which means a slow loss of mental ability. This is a growing area of concern for researchers.

Wildfire smoke has become harder to study because what burns has changed. In the past, most wildfires burned trees and brush. But today, fires often burn homes and buildings that contain plastics, metals, and other materials. Reid explained that when human structures burn, the smoke becomes much more toxic, meaning it contains more harmful chemicals.

Researchers have found that progress made by the Clean Air Act has been slowed by the rise in wildfire smoke. The Clean Air Act was a law passed to reduce air pollution across the United States. Along Colorado's Front Range, studies show that improvements in air quality have stalled because of wildfire smoke. The gains people worked hard to achieve are being undone.

There are simple steps people can take to clean the air in their homes. Reid suggests using an air filter and changing it often. One low-cost trick is to tape a furnace filter to the back of a box fan placed in the window. As the fan pulls in outside air, the filter collects the tiny smoke particles before they enter the room.

For people who need to go outside during heavy smoke, wearing the right mask can help. Masks like the N95, KN95, and KF94 are called respirator masks, and they are designed to filter out tiny particles from the air you breathe. People with health problems, like asthma, should be especially careful to protect themselves when smoke levels are high. Reid's key message is clear: there is no safe level of exposure to these particles, so reducing contact with them as much as possible is the best choice.