A Vote for Wool

**Ryan Ross** · 1st February 12, 09:09 AM

Originally Posted by tundramanq

I worked with them for 24 years at a national lab.

I'd say that lends a fair bit of credibility to your claim, personally.

**ForresterModern** · 31st January 12, 06:36 PM

I formerly had a colleague doing asthma research who made a direct correlation between frequency and severity of asthma in children with the microparticles of synthetic rubber that are the result of automotive tire wear. Huge study with multivariable analysis. Since smoking has diminished and coal mining hygiene has been improved this is considered the most common cause (pathologically proven) of black lung disease among city dwellers. Besides causing slow progressive fibrosis of lung lining membranes it can set off significant low level chronic allergic reactions that cause the spastic and inflammatory changes of reactive airways disease (aka asthma). One of the reasons asthmatics are so concerned about pollution alerts. Amazing how we never think about what happens to stuff that we wear out or burn or otherwise discard into our environment, just assuming it disappears miraculaously on its own.

**tyger** · 1st February 12, 05:30 AM

Originally Posted by ForresterModern

I formerly had a colleague doing asthma research who made a direct correlation between frequency and severity of asthma in children with the microparticles of synthetic rubber that are the result of automotive tire wear. Huge study with multivariable analysis. Since smoking has diminished and coal mining hygiene has been improved this is considered the most common cause (pathologically proven) of black lung disease among city dwellers. Besides causing slow progressive fibrosis of lung lining membranes it can set off significant low level chronic allergic reactions that cause the spastic and inflammatory changes of reactive airways disease (aka asthma). One of the reasons asthmatics are so concerned about pollution alerts. Amazing how we never think about what happens to stuff that we wear out or burn or otherwise discard into our environment, just assuming it disappears miraculaously on its own.

Jeff, kinda interesting. Do you happen to know if the correlation was just an association too strong to ignore, or did it have follow-up causal implications? I wonder because we know that we can find all sorts of strong correlations among events that are related but unexplained.

The establishment media is really something to watch. It clearly tries to gain relevance and importance by keeping one anxious at every tun. Everything in our enviroment is hazardous. Including us. The hazard du jour is part of every special broadcast, and the bigger the hoax the more coverage it gets ("climate change", anybody?). Never mind the real hazard to one's health is driving a car and eating peanut butter.

Keratin is a potent inflammatory agent. At least one resource says that the majority component of 'house dust' is exfoliated skin.

So I wonder: what could be the (short term and long term) effects of breathing particles of hair (and other skin adnexia) on our cardiopulmonary systems? Immune system?

I wonder about this, particularly in the light of the association of filaggrin-asthma and filaggrin-nickel reactivity/dermatitis.

But then again, after having spent 33 years in diagnostics, and research, I have other things that I want to do today.

**ForresterModern** · 1st February 12, 08:00 AM

Originally Posted by tyger

Jeff, kinda interesting. Do you happen to know if the correlation was just an association too strong to ignore, or did it have follow-up causal implications? I wonder because we know that we can find all sorts of strong correlations among events that are related but unexplained.

I remember the study as I was on the research advisory board who got to review data and study methodology at the time he was doing his studies (and for all I know may still be). Since it was multivariate a lot of factors were looked at as parts of "smog", includine CO, O3 (ozone), free carbon dust (from coal burning), hydrocarbons, HS2 and derivatives, Nitrogen deriviatives (typical pollution stuff), pollen and other organics, etc... in addition to the rubber microparticles. In this inner city study populatiion, although many other factors were seen to have intermittent but inconsistent effects, the one single factor that tracted consistently with the number and severity of asthmatic attacks in children was the relative amount of these rubber microparticles in the air samples obtained across the metro area (he even tracked different populations and sampled areas in the same metro area). When they were up kids in those areas had an increase in presentations to their pediatricians and local hospitals/clinics with asthmatic symptoms. Overall fascinating stuff, but unfortunately not something we can directly impact unless we significantly cut down automotive activity, or move to the country for cleaner air, which in many of the worst cases was indeed his recommendation.

**artificer** · 1st February 12, 05:48 AM

Originally Posted by ForresterModern

I formerly had a colleague doing asthma research who made a direct correlation between frequency and severity of asthma in children with the microparticles of synthetic rubber that are the result of automotive tire wear. Huge study with multivariable analysis. Since smoking has diminished and coal mining hygiene has been improved this is considered the most common cause (pathologically proven) of black lung disease among city dwellers. Besides causing slow progressive fibrosis of lung lining membranes it can set off significant low level chronic allergic reactions that cause the spastic and inflammatory changes of reactive airways disease (aka asthma). One of the reasons asthmatics are so concerned about pollution alerts. Amazing how we never think about what happens to stuff that we wear out or burn or otherwise discard into our environment, just assuming it disappears miraculaously on its own.

I used to live downtown in an old converted Victorian office block, right over a VERY busy street. I was constantly amazed and frightened by the black dust that would collect anywhere near an open window (or on anything that carried a static charge). It was as fine as ash, and godsforbid you ever got it wet- it would smear and turn into an ink-like substance.

Glad I moved.

ith: