Exceeding WHO ozone limit linked to heart disease hospitalisations: Study

Exceeding the World Health Organization (WHO) ozone limit is associated with substantial increases in hospital admissions for heart attack, heart failure and stroke, according to a new study.

The first evidence making this association is published in the European Heart Journal.

Even ozone levels below the WHO maximum were linked with worsened health, the study said.

"During this three-year study, ozone was responsible for an increasing proportion of admissions for cardiovascular disease as time progressed," said study author professor Shaowei Wu of Xi'an Jiaotong University, China.

"It is believed that climate change, by creating atmospheric conditions favouring ozone formation, will continue to raise concentrations in many parts of the world.

"Our results indicate that older people are particularly vulnerable to the adverse cardiovascular effects of ozone, meaning that worsening ozone pollution with climate change and the rapid ageing of the global population may produce even gre