From:
sukiec@optonline.net
Date: 2006-05-19 15:16:27 UTC
Subject: [ferrethealth] ozone and respiratory damage (with ferret refs, too)
To: ferrethealth@smartgroups.com
One topic which comes from time to time is how to SAFELY have the freshest smelling home when ferrets are there.
The trick, of course, is to do so without hurting the ferrets, or ferret caregivers for that matter. Two ways of freshening the air have repeatedly been discussed in several ferret sites during the past in relation to injury suffered by ferrets: some of the perfumed air fresheners, and appliances that generate high levels of ozone, such as some ionic air "cleaners" and ozone generators. High levels of ozone damage a ferret's respiratory tract, but giving up breathing isn't exactly an option for them or for us. While we all want enough ozone high above us in the ozone layer, having it in the air we daily breathe is anything but a good idea.
There is a new piece of work which indicates that there are not really any safe levels of ozone exposure:
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2006-02/yu-sfn021606.php
In this press release from Yale they note:
>Even at very low levels, ozone--the principal ingredient in smog--increases the >risk of premature death, according to a nationwide study to be published in the >April edition of the journal Environmental Health Perspectives.
>The study, sponsored by the Environmental Protection Agency and the Centers for >Disease Control, found that if a safe level for ozone exists, it is only at very low or >natural levels and far below current U.S. and international regulations. A 10 part->per-billion increase in the average of the two previous days' ozone levels is >associated with a 0.30 percent increase in mortality.
The full article is available here as an html full text piece:
http://www.ehponline.org/members/2006/8816/8816.html
and here as a pdf:
http://www.ehponline.org/members/2006/8816/8816.pdf
If anyone wonders if ozone is dangerous to ferrets notice the inflammation and tissue death (necrosis) in the study
"Ozone-induced Epithelial Injury in the Ferret Is Similar to Nonhuman Primates"
>We conclude that acute ozone exposure in ferrets induce severe epithelial necrosis >and inflammation, results in similar epithelial injury compared with monkeys, and >represents a better model of humans than rodents.
and multiple other studies using ferrets to see the damage suffered by lungs and tracheas. I wonder if any future studies will look at whether high ozone levels irritate and cause tissue death in the lining of ferret sinuses; right now the closest thing appear to be studies on causing human sinus tissue sloughing with ozone for those with over-grown lining. Food smells are important for encouraging ferrets to eat right (which is one reason why ferrets who are very ill or who are on medications like Furosemide/Frusemide/Lasix which dry the sinuses too greatly do best on heated, soupy, smelly foods) so decreasing the sense of smell, besides reducing the quality of a ferret's life since it is such an important sense for them, could impact on their ability to eat well enough.
There are currently outdoor ozone pollution levels (now possibly being revised), but more recently some states and countries are looking to create limits for indoor generation of ozone according to current news reports, so hopefully safer appliances will arise.
Categories snarfed from the EPA site:
http://cfpub.epa.gov/airnow/index.cfm?action=jump.jump_ozone
>Ozone can irritate your respiratory system
>Ozone can reduce lung function
>Ozone can aggravate asthma
>Ozone can inflame and damage cells that line your lungs
>Ozone may aggravate chronic lung diseases
>Ozone may cause permanent lung damage
>Ozone damage also can occur without any noticeable signs. People who live in >areas where ozone levels are frequently high may find that their initial symptoms >go away over time-particularly when exposure to high ozone levels continues for >several days. Ozone continues to cause lung damage even when the symptoms >have disappeared.
At this point in time, the best way to be sure that an air purifier is safe and effective is to use a help filter air cleaner, and if it has a charcoal filter that you can clean or change that will reduce odors.
Other ways to reduce odors: change litter pots daily. Clean bedding weekly (It is safest to avoid fabric softener and to stick to detergents without perfumes or dyes.) Do not bathe your ferret too often; when the skin becomes too irritated the skin oils which carry the scent increase. Some food ingredients which can be good for a ferret's health such as fish oil, or egg yolk can add scent but they are healthy so it is better to not purposely avoid them due to odor alone, though there are alternatives since flax oil can provide omega 3 fatty acids, and there are many other protein sources. Using a high quality food reduces the amount of food the ferret needs to eat to be satisfied, and therefore reduces the amount of waste produced. A good food is worth every penny.
From PubMed of the National Institutes of Health
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi
1:
Wu ZX, Satterfield BE, Dey RD.
Substance P released from intrinsic airway neurons contributes to ozone-enhanced airway hyperresponsiveness in ferret trachea.
J Appl Physiol. 2003 Aug;95(2):742-50. Epub 2003 May 2.
PMID: 12730146 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
2:
Alexander RP, Warrellow GJ, Eaton MA, Boyd EC, Head JC, Porter JR, Brown JA, Reuberson JT, Hutchinson B, Turner P, Boyce B, Barnes D, Mason B, Cannell A, Taylor RJ, Zomaya A, Millican A, Leonard J, Morphy R, Wales M, Perry M, Allen RA, Gozzard N, Hughes B, Higgs G.
CDP840. A prototype of a novel class of orally active anti-inflammatory phosphodiesterase 4 inhibitors.
Bioorg Med Chem Lett. 2002 Jun 3;12(11):1451-6.
PMID: 12031318 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
3:
Wu ZX, Maize DF Jr, Satterfield BE, Frazer DG, Fedan JS, Dey RD.
Role of intrinsic airway neurons in ozone-induced airway hyperresponsiveness in ferret trachea.
J Appl Physiol. 2001 Jul;91(1):371-8.
PMID: 11408454 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
4:
Sterner-Kock A, Kock M, Braun R, Hyde DM.
Ozone-induced epithelial injury in the ferret is similar to nonhuman primates.
Am J Respir Crit Care Med. 2000 Sep;162(3 Pt 1):1152-6.
PMID: 10988145 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
and full text article here:
http://ajrccm.atsjournals.org/cgi/content/full/162/3/1152
5:
McBride RK, Oberdoerster G, Marin MG.
Effects of ozone on the cholinergic secretory responsiveness of ferret tracheal glands.
Environ Res. 1991 Jun;55(1):79-90.
PMID: 1855492 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
Recommended webpages for information:
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2006-02/yu-sfn021606.php
http://www.livescience.com/technology/060509_air_purifiers.html (Note revisions, please. The revision makes a person wonder if some of the worst of the ionic air "cleaners" have been removed from the market but it is unclear on which ones were tested and the researchers can only speak about those they actually tested, so the results of the Consumer Reports study below may still apply for the worst of the lot. Still, new research indicates that the quoted ozone levels for safety actually still cause pretty high increases in mortality.)
http://www.consumerreports.org:80/cro/appliances/ionizing-air-cleaners-505/overview/index.htm
http://www.health.state.mn.us/divs/eh/air/ozone.htm
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/7391185/
http://www.webmd.com/content/article/104/107232.htm
http://www.mlmwatch.org/04C/Alpine/alpine.html
In 1998, volume 9, no. 4 in this AFA URL:
http://www.ferret.org/newsletter/AFRarch96_98.htm
Freddie Ann Hoffman M.D., a pediatrician and ferret advocate, has an article on the risks of ozone
http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/idlh/10028156.html
http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/topics/ozone/
http://www.healthgoods.com/Education/healthy_home_information/indoor_air_quality/ozone_generators.htm
http://www.healthgoods.com/Education/healthy_home_information/indoor_air_quality_short_course/air_purification.htm
http://www.cal-iaq.org/iaqsheet.htm
(Scroll down.)
and there are more
====================================================================<<<
Whatever you Wanadoo, click below:
http://ads.smartgroups.com/adclick/CID=000000b7c79a99a500000000
====================================================================>>>
--
If you want to share pictures, use the calendar, or start a vote
visit http://www.smartgroups.com/groups/ferrethealth
To leave the group, email: ferrethealth-unsubscribe@smartgroups.com
Report abuse http://www.smartgroups.com/text/abusereport.cfm?gid%3D1423922&mid%3D17410