The readers of the European Respiratory Journal are well aware of the importance of environmental exposures on the incidence and aggravation of several respiratory disorders, including asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), leading in some cases to mortality. Almost each month, one or more scientific articles deal with environmental lung diseases or with environmentally induced cardiovascular conditions (including ischaemic heart disease, heart failure and stroke), often in patients already affected by smoking-related pulmonary diseases.
When dealing with the environment, there are three areas of great importance: indoor air pollution, outdoor air pollution and the health consequences of climate change. Research over many decades has highlighted the extent of the effects of outdoor air pollution on the respiratory system, the complex mechanisms of these effects and the fact that adverse health effects occur at low pollution levels, similar to those of the air that Europeans in many parts of the continent breathe. Indoor air, which is often more polluted than outdoor air, has been …