Health

U.S. Embassies Halt Air Quality Monitoring Abroad

Published

1 year ago

March 4, 2025

U.S. Embassies Halt Air Quality Monitoring Abroad

What’s the air quality in New Delhi, Jakarta or Buenos Aires? Until Tuesday, the United States Embassy in those cities could have told you.

But the Trump administration has effectively shut down a global air quality monitoring program, ending more than a decade of public data-collection and reporting from 80 embassies and consulates worldwide.

The information has supported research, helped thousands of foreign service officers working abroad to decide if it was safe to let their children play outdoors, and has directly led to air quality improvements in countries like China.

The State Department said in an email that the program was being suspended “due to budget constraints.”

Health officials and environmental experts said ending air quality monitoring would hurt Americans overseas, particularly those who work for the U. S. government.

“Embassies are situated sometimes in very difficult air quality circumstances,” said Gina McCarthy, who led the Environmental Protection Agency in the Obama administration.

She, along with John Kerry, who was secretary of state at the time, expanded globally what had been a limited but transformational air monitoring effort in China.

“You can’t send people in risky areas without information,” Ms. McCarthy said. “We generally think of risky areas as war zones or something like that. But it’s equally important to look at whether their health is deteriorating because they are in a place with such poor air quality.”

In 2008, United States officials in Beijing installed air quality monitors on the roof of the American Embassy and eventually began posting data hourly about levels of one of the most dangerous types of air pollutants, tiny particulate matter known as PM 2.5. The particles can enter the lungs and bloodstream and have been linked to respiratory problems, heart attacks and other serious health effects.

The information revealed what local residents already knew: that pollution was far worse than the Chinese government would acknowledge.

“All hell broke loose,” Ms. McCarthy recalled. The Chinese government tried unsuccessfully to pressure the American Embassy to stop making the data public, calling the readings illegal and attacking the quality of the science, she and others said.

Ultimately, Chinese officials relented. They put in place their own monitoring system, increased the budget for pollution control and eventually began collaborating with the United States on air quality projects.

In 2015, Ms. McCarthy and Mr. Kerry announced that they would expand air monitoring across American diplomatic missions, arguing that air pollution, like climate change, required global data and solutions.

A 2022 study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences found that when U.S. embassies began tracking local air pollution, host countries took action. The study found that, since 2008, there had been substantial reductions in fine particulate concentration levels in cities with a U.S. monitor, resulting in a decrease in the risk of premature death for more than 300 million people.

Dan Westervelt, a research professor at Columbia University’s Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory, said many countries did not have public air quality monitoring and that the data from the embassies provided researchers with reliable information.

Dr. Westervelt said he had been working on a project through the State Department using air quality data from embassies in five West African countries, but received a stop-work order when President Trump took office in January.

“In my opinion it puts the health of foreign service officers at risk,” he said. “But they’re also hindering potential research and policy.”

The data had appeared on AirNow, a website that was managed by both the E.P.A. and the State Department, and also on ZephAir, a mobile application run by the State Department. On Tuesday the website was offline and no data was being shown on the app.

The State Department said the air monitors at embassies would continue to run for an undetermined length of time but would not be sending live data to the app or other platforms “if/until funding for the underlying network is resolved.”

Embassies and other posts would be able to retrieve historical data through the end of the month, according to an internal email viewed by The New York Times.

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Health

Dementia risk signals could lie in simple blood pressure readings, researchers say

Published

2 hours ago

March 27, 2026

Press Room

Dementia risk signals could lie in simple blood pressure readings, researchers say

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Simple measurements taken during routine blood pressure checks could predict dementia risk years before symptoms appear.

That’s according to new research presented this week at the American College of Cardiology’s Annual Scientific Session in Louisiana.

The findings draw on two studies led by researchers at Georgetown University, which suggest that monitoring how blood vessels age and stiffen over time can provide a window into future cognitive health.

LURKING DEMENTIA RISK EXPOSED BY BREAKTHROUGH TEST 25 YEARS BEFORE SYMPTOMS

Data shows rates of dementia and aging-related cognitive decline are expected to increase as populations age, and half of U.S. adults have high blood pressure (hypertension).

Scientists believe that efforts to better address hypertension, a key contributor to heart disease and a risk factor for dementia, could affect both cardiac and brain health.

Data shows rates of dementia and aging-related cognitive decline are expected to increase as populations age. Meanwhile, half of U.S. adults have high blood pressure. (iStock)

“Blood pressure management isn’t just about preventing heart attacks and strokes; it may also be one of the most actionable strategies for preserving cognitive health,” Dr. Newton Nyirenda, the study’s lead author and an epidemiologist at Georgetown University in Washington, said in a press release.

The research focused on two metrics, the pulse pressure-heart rate index and estimated pulse wave velocity. Both were calculated using data collected during standard doctor visits, such as heart rate, age and blood pressure.

“Blood pressure management isn’t just about preventing heart attacks and strokes; it may also be one of the most actionable strategies for preserving cognitive health.”

Researchers examined five years of data patterns for more than 8,500 people in the SPRINT trial, a large study of adults 50 years and older with hypertension. In the follow-up, 323 of the participants developed probable dementia.

HIDDEN BRAIN CONDITION MAY QUADRUPLE DEMENTIA RISK IN OLDER ADULTS, STUDY SUGGESTS

In one study, the team found the pulse pressure-heart rate index was a strong independent predictor of dementia risk in adults over 50. For participants under 65, every one-unit increase was associated with a 76% higher risk of developing dementia.

For participants under 65, an increase in the pulse pressure-heart rate index was associated with a 76% higher risk of developing dementia. (iStock)

The second study found that adults with consistently elevated or rapidly increasing pulse wave velocity were more likely to develop dementia than those with stable velocity, even after accounting for factors like smoking, gender and cardiovascular history.

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“Our findings suggest that vascular aging patterns may provide meaningful insight into future dementia risk,” said Nyirenda. “This reinforces the idea that managing vascular health earlier in life may influence long-term brain health.”

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The team emphasized that clinicians should tailor risk assessments and treatment strategies to the individual.

Further studies are needed to confirm these parameters and determine whether changing vascular aging trajectories reduces dementia risk. (iStock)

“You don’t want to wait until a patient starts manifesting cognitive decline before you act,” said senior study author Sula Mazimba, an associate professor at the University of Virginia.

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Researchers noted the study could not establish causation. Other limitations included the fact that participants already had hypertension and elevated cardiovascular risk, meaning the findings may not apply to people without those conditions.

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Further studies are needed to confirm these findings and to determine whether improving blood vessel health over time could reduce dementia risk.

Khloe Quill is a lifestyle production assistant with Fox News Digital. She and the lifestyle team cover a range of story topics including food and drink, travel, and health.

Health

Everything You Need To Know About Zepbound for Weight Loss, Including Costs

Published

13 hours ago

March 26, 2026

Press Room

Everything You Need To Know About Zepbound for Weight Loss, Including Costs

What Is Zepbound? Weight-Loss Benefits, Costs and Dosage

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Health

‘Gas station heroin’ banned in another state amid nationwide crackdowns

Published

14 hours ago

March 26, 2026

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‘Gas station heroin’ banned in another state amid nationwide crackdowns

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A dangerous substance dubbed “gas station heroin” continues to alarm medical professionals, with more states making moves to restrict or ban tianeptine.

Fourteen states have officially classified the tricyclic antidepressant as a Schedule I controlled substance.

Connecticut is the latest state to crack down, officially banning the sale and use of the substance starting on Wednesday.

HEALTH OFFICIALS WARN OF DANGEROUS SUBSTANCE AVAILABLE IN STORES ACROSS THE NATION

Tianeptine, which can produce euphoria in higher doses, can be more potent than morphine and addictive opioids, according to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

Some countries have taken steps to restrict how tianeptine is prescribed or dispensed, and have even revised the labels to warn people of its potential addictive qualities.

Tianeptine can be more potent than morphine and addictive opioids. (iStock)

Misuse of tianeptine can cause severe adverse health effects, including respiratory depression, severe sedation and death, according to the Drug Enforcement Administration.

Some companies market the drug as an aid for pain, anxiety and depression, or as a means of improving mental alertness in a pill, powder, salt or liquid form.

The products are typically sold at convenience stores, gas stations, vape shops and online retailers, and go by names like Tianaa, ZaZa, Neptune’s Fix, Pegasus and TD Red.

Connecticut is the 15th state to classify tianeptine as a Schedule I controlled substance. (Markus Scholz/picture alliance via Getty Images)

Connecticut Lt. Gov. Susan Bysiewicz said in a press release that the schedule change is a necessary step to combat addiction.

“With false marketing that led consumers to believe these are safe products, and with candy-like flavor options, these substances posed a clear threat to those battling substance-use disorder and our youngest residents,” she added.

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The Nutmeg State also added Mitragyna speciosa (kratom), 7-hydroxymitragynine, Bromazolam, Flubromazolam, Nitazenes and Phenibut to the schedule classification.

Earlier this month, FDA Commissioner Martin Makary penned a letter sounding the alarm on what he called a “dangerous and growing health trend.”

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“I am very concerned,” Makary wrote. “I want the public to be especially aware of this dangerous product and the serious and continuing risk it poses to America’s youth.”

New York-based Robert Schwaner, M.D., vice chair of system clinical affairs at Stony Brook Emergency Medicine, told Fox News Digital that the FDA has never approved tianeptine as a dietary supplement.

“As with heroin and other opioids, significant mu-opioid receptor stimulation ultimately results in a loss of respiratory drive and subsequent cardiac arrest.” (Dekalb County Sheriff’s Office)

“The euphoria at low doses is primarily due to increased serotonergic activity from its serotonin reuptake effects. With increasing doses, the mu-opioid receptor stimulation may become lethal,” said Schwaner. “As with heroin and other opioids, significant mu-opioid receptor stimulation ultimately results in a loss of respiratory drive and subsequent cardiac arrest.”

Schwaner said he believes the substance requires national regulation due to its addictive qualities.

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“Acting at the same receptor as opioids, tianeptine has the potential for an individual to develop tolerance, subsequent dependence and withdrawal from its use,” he cautioned.

Fox News Digital reached out to the FDA for comment.

Fox News Digital’s Greg Wehner and Melissa Rudy contributed to this report.

Ashley J. DiMella is a lifestyle reporter with Fox News Digital.