Does Air Pollution Cause Mortality?

Hundreds of studies (for literature review, see Anderson, 1967; Lave and Seskin, 1970; and NAS, 1973, 1975) have documented the association between air pollution and mortality and morbidity rates. A wide variety of air pollutants has been studied in many geographical settings involving people from a wide variety of socioeconomic backgrounds. None of the studies is entirely satisfactory, and many are so flawed as to be useless.