More bad news about cars and carcinogens
According to the Indoor Air Quality Association, breathing air in
your car's cabin is worse than walking down the street breathing in exhaust fumes in smoggy town. In addition to the
"new car smell" that has already been heavily reported on
as a possible cause of cancer, vehicle's aren't doing such a great job at filtering the car's exhaust fumes out of
the air that enters the cabin. Air conditioner filters and opening your windows can help, but the organization says
that prolonged exposure can cause cancer and respiratory disease.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
Joseph Willemssen 10:37PM (12/18/2005)
Here, let me save everyone the trouble.
"Nowadays,everything is bad for you. Junk food, bacon, walking in the park -- where will it end? People need to grow up and accept the dangers of life and stop trying to impose themselves onto those of us who aren't afraid."
That's pretty much how 90% of the comments on this thread will go.
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fo' shizzle 10:37PM (12/18/2005)
i'll show you!! i'm gonna just hold my breath. that way i can live forevvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvv
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Tankstelle 10:37PM (12/18/2005)
I disagree. I am unable to make my own decisions. Therefore, I am more than happy to hand over any decision making ability to my trusty United States government. I can trust the Republicans, right?
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Glenn Arlt 10:37PM (12/18/2005)
OK so now we're concerned about carcinogens in the atmosphere? Well, when I was in the UK in June, I distinctly recall watching all of about 30 minutes of BBC out of two weeks, and on the news, the Beeb was babbling on about how diesel car fumes were carcinogenic and how it is not an official concern for the UK and EC.
This goes beyond the concern of making the levels of CO, HC, NOx and particulates low enough to pass muster on emissions tests.
Diesel fanatics? - your turn. Have at it.
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Glenn Arlt 10:37PM (12/18/2005)
Sorry that should read "is NOW an official concern for the UK and EC (governments)" - typo.
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Richard Warren 10:37PM (12/18/2005)
"Be afraid, very afraid" of everything, it's been the tone for years. And since 9/11 it's gotten worse, we are a country in fear and it's time to stop.
And it's really easy, we start to die from the moment we hatch and when our number is up it's up, be it natural, car accident, bad air, food, terrorists.
Get over it America
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Alex 10:37PM (12/18/2005)
How long has this been going on? Cars are getting cleaner and cleaner. We are living happier and happier lives, which are longer than in the past. This topic should not be ignored, but it should not be blowen this out of porpotion. I am American and expect a little cancer in my life .... (that was a joke) ...
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Joseph Willemssen 10:37PM (12/18/2005)
Told ya...
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tilley 10:37PM (12/18/2005)
If everyone would just buy a Volvo, the world would be a healthier place....they can be had with an IAQS (Interior Air Quality System), the radiator magically converts ozone into pure oxygen and the interior smells like fish when new. What more do you want?!
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D 10:37PM (12/18/2005)
Joseph: So what? Did you actually have anything intelligent to add to the thread?
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E 10:37PM (12/18/2005)
My intelligent contribution to this thread is to bash other posters.
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Glenn Arlt 10:37PM (12/18/2005)
I understand some luxury Hyundai cars sold in South Korea have a feature which senses the quality (or lack thereof) of the ambient outside air, and automatically closes off the outside air - only recirculating the inside air - until the outside air quality improves.
I'm not sure how well that might work in LA.
Where (and more imporantly, WHEN) was the photo taken for this story?
Cars are much, much cleaner than they were 35 or 40 years ago, or even 30 years ago when the catalytic convertor came out.
Most people have no idea how much cleaner the US water, air, and overall environment is since a few decades ago. We should be proud that we've made such good progress - and I'm NOT being sarcastic.
Of course, then we "congratulate" ourselves by going to Mal-Wart and buying cheap crap from China (or go to a GM, Ford or DCX dealer where we buy products from Mexico) where they spew millions of tons of pollution into the air and water to provide us with cheap junk, toys, computers, cars, SUVs, crossovers....
Kind of a major disconnect eh? But being careful to actually buy items from nations which have something like a decent human rights record AND a decent environmental record (wherever/whenever possible) is..... what? Apparently not done except by "weirdos" like me.
Not that I expect perfection on earth, of course. I just want to "try" to encourage the nations and companies which do a better job of being responsible world citizens by sending them biz rather than companies and nations which don't. One careful purchase every week by one person is a ripple in the pond. One careful purchase every week by tens of millions of people is a tsunami which knocks over poorly run countries and companies.
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Doogs 10:37PM (12/18/2005)
There is clearly only one possible solution. We must destroy all cars, shut down all factories, turn off the electricity, abandon industry and return to an agrarian society.
No more worries of global warming, carcinogens, of cancer from eating this and heart disease from eating that. No more fears of terrorists or WMDs or identify theft.
Instead we can all worry about drought and famine and cholera. And about dying when we fall off a horse and break a leg and develop an infection.
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Joseph Willemssen 10:37PM (12/18/2005)
Gee, Doogs - that's kind of outside the boundaries you usually consider appropriate. Does anyone really advocate anything resembling what you're describing? If not, then why bring it up?
Progress means going forward - learning from the past to better ourselves, not to recede back and throw out the proverbial baby with the bath water.
I really don't understand people who either deny obvious problems in the world or the need to fix them. And making progress in the past doesn't mean everything is fine today.
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Glenn Arlt 10:37PM (12/18/2005)
Besides, Joseph, if Doogs wants to do that, he can go join the Amish and do exactly what he just blabbled on about. He'd be welcome.
Of course we wouldn't ever see his comments on here again. He'd be in the back 40 plowing behind the asses of two great big horses.
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Steve J 10:37PM (12/18/2005)
"I understand some luxury Hyundai cars sold in South Korea have a feature which senses the quality (or lack thereof) of the ambient outside air, and automatically closes off the outside air - only recirculating the inside air - until the outside air quality improves.
I'm not sure how well that might work in LA. "
Seems to work just fine for my Audi. To the point I can sometimes consciously notice a difference in the air when it makes the switch (such as when I'm stuck behind a car visibly burning oil).
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max 10:37PM (12/18/2005)
"Of course, then we "congratulate" ourselves by going to Mal-Wart and buying cheap crap from China (or go to a GM, Ford or DCX dealer where we buy products from Mexico) where they spew millions of tons of pollution into the air and water to provide us with cheap junk, toys, computers, cars, SUVs, crossovers.... "
Yeah-cause they're the only ones to build stuff in the third world..... and after all computers have never improved anything.....
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md 10:37PM (12/18/2005)
Pretty soon we will be seeing those obnoxious anti-smoking ads on t.v. targeting cars as well
"Can anybody tell me why driving a car isn't stupid?"
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Doogs 10:37PM (12/18/2005)
Alas, I was being facetious. But since that seems to have escaped you, I suppose my point did as well, so I had better restate it directly.
With a little perspective, it is possible to see that this, in the scheme of things, is peanuts. Compared with the fears and threats we as a society used to have to live with on a regular basis (starvation, etc), poor automotive A/C filtration is a joke.
And yes, compared with the myriad of threats and fears we live with on a regular basis today, it is a joke.
I am not saying it is not a problem. I am not saying it does not need to be fixed...but there are bigger fish to fry. And there are thousands of them. Let's fix them first. Let's address the air in our cities and the pollutants in our waters first. Let's get kids back outside and exercising again first.
Creating a big to-do about poor filtration in automotive A/C is like creating a big to-do about rust on the railing of the Titanic. It should be tended to...but let's focus on steering clear of that iceberg first.
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Joseph Willemssen 10:37PM (12/18/2005)
"With a little perspective, it is possible to see that this, in the scheme of things, is peanuts. Compared with the fears and threats we as a society used to have to live with on a regular basis (starvation, etc), poor automotive A/C filtration is a joke.
And yes, compared with the myriad of threats and fears we live with on a regular basis today, it is a joke.
I am not saying it is not a problem. I am not saying it does not need to be fixed...but there are bigger fish to fry."
Well, I did get it and I understand it was facetious. But you're basically asserting if there's "bigger fish to fry", one shouldn't discuss, let alone concern oneself, with "smaller fish".
For example - what car is good and what is bad, looks good or doesn't, isn't exactly "big fish", wouldn't you agree? Yet look at all of us come here to discuss those trivial things.
Also, because society has come a long way doesn't mean we don't work to improve the problems we have today - as I stated before.
So, I have to wonder why you feel to make a stand that somehow air pollution and cancer are somehow trivial topics.
"Let's fix them first."
That's a bit of a scarcity mentality and a false trade-off. Working on one thing doesn't necessarily exclude the ability to work on something else.
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