As I blog through the energy sector and related impacts to our health and the environment, I also want to share good news including medical findings. This year, a new study by NIEHS and John Hopkins University School of Medicine, “finds vitamin D has a protective effect among asthmatic obese children who live in urban environments with high indoor air pollution.”

NIEHS also reports that in 2016, “asthma affected 26 million Americans and nearly 340 million people worldwide, according to the Global Burden of Disease study. The disease can profoundly affect quality of life and financial and emotional health and is a major cause of missed time from school and work. Severe asthma attacks may require emergency room visits and hospitalizations, and can be fatal.”