In recent years, scientists have learned disturbing things about the long-term risks faced by wildland firefighters, who breathe enormous amounts of wildfire smoke on the job. New research strongly suggests that neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer’s could also be a concern.
To investigate that risk, researchers exposed mice to a level of smoke intended to simulate exposures over a 15- to 30-year career in wildfire. What they found, according to a paper recently published in the journal Toxicological Sciences, were “robust changes in gene expression profiles” in the brains of the smoke-exposed mice.
Adam Schuller, a postdoctoral fellow at Colorado State University and the paper’s lead author, says the degree of change was surprising – and “alarming.”
“What we see just from this study alone is that … there is a brain phenotype or a brain molecular signature or pattern that is suggestive of potential long term damage, including Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, Huntington's disease or these other neurodegenerative conditions,” Schuller said.
“We don't have definitive evidence to prove that correlation or causation,” he added. “So we're not saying wildland firefighting drives Alzheimer's disease and every wildland firefighter is going to be diagnosed with this condition. But wildland firefighters, those entering this career, should be aware that there is the potential for risk associated with adverse brain health that might come as a result of a long term career in this profession.”
Schuller said a lot more research is needed to further understand these potential risks. For one, he noted all of the mice used were male, reflecting the wide gender disparities in the wildfire workforce, but work is underway on female mice.
“[Firefighters] are being exposed to a noxious chemical toxicant that we do not fully understand or grasp the potential health effects of,” Schuller said.
For the time being, though, he suggested there are things firefighters can do to lower their potential risk, like exercise and purifying the air they breathe off the line.
This story was produced by the Mountain West News Bureau, a collaboration between Wyoming Public Media, Nevada Public Radio, Boise State Public Radio in Idaho, KUNR in Nevada, KUNC in Colorado and KANW in New Mexico, with support from affiliate stations across the region. Funding for the Mountain West News Bureau is provided in part by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.
