Italy is the first country in Europe for deaths attributable to air pollution with around 80 thousand premature deaths per year. "To effectively combat the smog that grips cities it is necessary to change the daily habits of the population", says the Italian Society of Environmental Medicine.
Pathologies of the cardiovascular system represent the leading cause of death in Italy. Fine particles and nitrogen oxides are able to worsen oxidative stress and trigger a systemic inflammatory response at of the vascular system, causing atherosclerosis and endothelial dysfunction.