A new study published in the journal Cancer has found a correlation between long term inhalation of incense smoke and significantly elevated risk of upper respiratory tract cancers (except for nasopharyngeal cancer). However, there doesn’t appear to be an affect on the risk of lung cancer. Incense is made from plant materials mixed with oils which, upon burning, can produce a mixture of possible carcinogens, including polyaromatic hydrocarbons, carbonyls and benzene. The researchers are concerned about the public health implications of their study given that incense use is popular around the world. “Besides initiatives to reduce incense smoke exposure, future studies should be undertaken to identify the least harmful types of incense,” they said. Full story.
Tags: incense, lung cancer, smoke, squamous cell
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Dr. Steven Chang, the author of DailyDose, is a staff physician with Kosmix RightHealth. Dr. Chang practices Family Medicine at the University of California Davis Medical Center, where his medical interests include both pediatric and geriatric care, public health, gay and lesbian health, and sleep medicine. Dr. Chang trained at the Stanford University affiliated O'Connor Hospital, and was a research fellow at the National Institute of Health. He holds an M.D. from McGill University and a BA in Public Health from Johns Hopkins University.