Urban Bioaerosol Exposure, Respiratory Symptoms and Household Use of Plant-Based Remedies: A Cross-Sectional Environmental Health Study
Keywords:
bioaerosol, air pollution, respiratory symptoms, neem, bitter gourd, urban healthAbstract
Background: Fine particulate pollution and airborne microbial exposure may jointly contribute to respiratory symptoms in densely populated cities, while household use of plant-based remedies is common but poorly characterised.
Objective: To examine associations among ambient bioaerosol indicators, respiratory symptoms and self-reported use of neem- or bitter-gourd-based preparations.
Methods: A cross-sectional survey of 640 adults was conducted across eight urban neighbourhoods. Forty-eight-hour particulate sampling and culture-based microbial counts were collected at neighbourhood level. Participants completed respiratory symptom, smoking, occupational-exposure and household-remedy questionnaires; spirometry was performed in a stratified subsample of 220 participants.
Results: Neighbourhoods in the highest tertile of culturable bioaerosol load had a higher adjusted prevalence of chronic cough or wheeze (prevalence ratio 1.42; 95% CI 1.12–1.80) compared with the lowest tertile. The association strengthened among current smokers. Regular household use of neem- or bitter-gourd-based remedies was reported by 18% of participants, but it was not independently associated with better spirometry or lower symptom prevalence after adjustment for socioeconomic factors and smoking. PM2.5 and microbial counts were moderately correlated (r=0.46). Participants with both high particulate and high microbial exposure had the greatest symptom burden.
Conclusion: Urban respiratory symptoms were associated with combined particulate and microbial exposure, whereas self-directed plant-remedy use showed no measurable protective association. The findings support integrated air-quality and bioaerosol monitoring and illustrate the importance of separating laboratory antimicrobial potential from unproven population-level health benefit.
Publication format: research abstract. No full-text manuscript accompanies this record.
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