Well, there have been two smog/asthma studies on Atlanta that I know of. One
on the improvement of symptoms during the Olympics when the roads were empty
and one about how bad it got this summer. I know when I moved from Atlanta
to way outside the city, I was able to go without meds for 2 years.

http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_hb4384/is_200108/ai_n15285248

Asthma cases spike with smog Atlanta air quality worst in four years --
"Atlanta Journal Constitution"

Asthma cases spike with smog  Atlanta air quality worst in four years
By BILL HENDRICK
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution  Published on: 07/21/06

The smog-shrounded Atlanta area surpassed federal ozone safety standards
Thursday for the 22nd time since smog season began May 1. It's the worst air
this region's had in four years, aggravating asthma and sending coughing,
wheezing, red-eyed sufferers to emergency rooms and doctors' offices.

Grady Memorial Hospital's Denise Simpson said its asthma clinic has seen
more than 700 patients since May, more than in recent summers, which were
wetter and cooler. As doctors are advising patients to stay indoors rather
than risk getting sicker from the air pollution, the patient count is also
up at some area allergy and asthma clinics.

Ozone is a key ingredient in smog, which is hazardous for people with
respiratory problems, including asthma, emphysema and chronic obstructive
pulmonary respiratory disease.

Metro Atlanta is in a weeklong cycle of bad air prompted by a string of
90-plus degree days, said Susan Zimmer-Dauphinee, who manages air monitoring
for the Georgia Environmental Protection Division. This week, the region has
had two Code Orange days, when sensitive groups need to limit their
activities outside, and two Code Red days, when the air is unhealthy for
nearly everyone.

A little more than half-way through the smog season, metro Atlanta is on
track to have the worst air since 2002 when the region violated the federal
Clean Air standard on 37 days. The region this year has already violated the
standard on 22 days.

Zimmer-Dauphinee expects more smog alert and excessive ozone days for the
rest of the smog season, which runs through Sept. 30, the most likely time
for temperatures to get hot enough to cook emissions into ground-level
ozone.

"Ozone is part of smog, but only a part," said Zimmer-Dauphinee. "The hazy
stuff is ozone. Smog is composed of fine particulates, emitted from car
exhausts, industry. But if you have high ozone, you'll have smog."

Meteorologist Matt Sena with the National Weather Service in Peachtree City
said conditions haven't been good for people who suffer from respiratory
problems. Average temperatures have been up since May and stayed there.
Rainfall is down compared to other, "cleaner," years. And winds have been
moderate.

"We've had some rain but it's sporadic, heavy for a little while in some
areas, but mostly scattered," he said. "Generally, conditions have been
conducive to the buildup of smog and ozone." He said tropical storms in
recent years brought this area relief from smog and ozone.

Asthma sufferer Sandy Weyers, 45, of Smyrna, said she feels like coughing
every time she looks south and sees Atlanta's skyscrapers all but obscured
by smog.

"It's nasty," she said. "It looks scary. I wheeze a lot. I have a
prescription inhaler and that saves me."

Dr. Gerald Teague, Pulmonologist at Emory University School of Medicine,
said Emory's clinics are seeing an increase in patients with respiratory
problems. Smog and the fine particles in ozone, he said, enter the lungs'
deepest areas, causing inflammation and respiratory distress.

"The combination of carbon and iron is a chemical stressor to the lung," he
said. "Oxidative stress is caused by the carbon, iron, metals causing
chemical stress, inflammation of individuals with asthma, cystic fibrosis
and others with allergies and sensitive lungs and smokers."

Asthma causes thousands of hospitalizations in Georgia each year, 11,000 in
2003, the latest year for which statistics are available.

The illness, which afflicts 212,000 children and 480,000 adults in the
state, is far more severe in African-Americans than in other ethnic groups,
Teague said.

Atlanta ranks No. 9 on the American Lung Association's "worst 10" list for
people with respiratory problems.

"Ozone is clearly going to be worse this year," Teague said. "It's not clear
why, but asthma is very prevalent in Atlanta," said Dr. David Tanner, a
pulmonary specialist with Atlanta Allergy & Asthma Clinics. "We're having a
lot of [patient] walk-ins, and that's part and parcel of heavy ozone. We're
hearing a lot more wheezing, coughing, people asking for medications that
can help

hey, if you need help I just got a go ahead for housing help cause of my
disability. lets rent a home. ( wife and I)
On a more serious note

Anyone else who don't have a means for housing and is suffering from asthma
contact me, maybe some can recommend cities. Yes there is a list of cities
with low particulates but which one and why? I tend to like a bit cooler but
hey I will take what I can get.

Mscantpollution@yahoo.com

I have lived in New Mexico for 45 years. Albuquerque can be very polluted
during the winter because of the traffic on the I-25 and I-40 interchange,
airport traffic, fireplaces and our trough (valley) which prevents air from
dissipating during certain temperature situations. Yesterday and today, we
have had a yellow/orange alert (see AIRNOW site for info) and sometimes
red alerts (no burn). I have also lived in Santa Fe. SF has dust pollution
and is surrounded by grasses, juniper trees and sages which produce massive
amounts of pollen frm Feb to Oct. Cost of living is very high in Santa Fe.
Silver City has become a favorite for affordable, quality of life and no
pollution except potential forest fires which are everywhere in NM. There
many other smaller cities in NM you might consider. BCoke