Indoor PM2.5, tobacco smoking and chronic lung diseases: A narrative review

The lung is one of the most important organs exposed to environmental agents. People spend approximately 90% of their time indoors, and risks to health may thus be greater from exposure to poor air quality indoors than outdoors. Multiple indoor pollutants have been linked to chronic respiratory diseases. Environmental tobacco smoke (ETS) is known as an important source of multiple pollutants, especially in indoor environments. Indoor PM2.5 (particulate matter with aerodynamic diameter < 2.5 mu m) was reported to be the most reliable marker of the presence of tobacco smoke. Recent studies have demonstrated that PM2.5 is closely correlated with chronic lung diseases. In this paper, we reviewed the relationship of tobacco smoking and indoor PM2.5 and the mechanism that underpin the link of tobacco smoke, indoor PM2.5 and chronic lung diseases.