There is a link between exposure to pollutants from the refinery and stroke rates in the southern United States. The results were published in a scientific journal.
There is a high concentration of refining and production in the southern US. Multiple pollutants have been linked to diseases which lead to strokes. The link between residential exposure to PPR and their link to causing strokes was not studied before.
A plausible risk factor for stroke is the geographic concentration of economic sectors and their associated by- products. The lead author of the study, Honghyok Kim, will join the University of Illinois at Chicago as an assistant professor in September.
There is a correlation between the number of strokes in adults and the amount of exposure to oil. The team took data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention of the US's Population Level Analysis and Community EStimates (PLACES) for seven southern US states and looked at areas near petrol refineries. Sulfur dioxide is a pollutant that can increase the risk of stroke and is found in these areas. People living near petrol refineries had a higher incidence of strokes. Mississippi has a petrol refinery that could explain the prevalence of strokes to the highest degree. One census tract in Texas has the highest prevalence of strokes of any census tract.
The increased prevalence of strokes may be related to sociodemographic factors. Lower-income people were disproportionately affected by the proximity of the refinery.
Kim says that their research has the potential to inform both public health and environmental regulatory interventions.
More information: Honghyok Kim et al, Residential exposure to petroleum refining and stroke in the southern United States, Environmental Research Letters (2022). DOI: 10.1088/1748-9326/ac8943 Journal information: Environmental Research Letters
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