Make it stop?

Celebratory fireworks can be fun but also come with safety and health risks.

Read in browser

Hi, this is Naomi in Berlin, where New Year's Eve is more explosive than many would like. More on that soon, but first... Today's must-reads Japan's 'dementia money' problem puts trillions at risk. A tough exercise regime can lead to overtraining syndrome. The price honeybees may pay for biofuel. Berlin Feuerwerkswahnsinn Next to the playground in my Berlin neighborhood as night fell on New Year's Eve, parents helped elementary-school aged children set off firecrackers. By German standards, this is all perfectly normal. New Year's is the only time that personal fireworks are legal, and they're so common that about half of people with children planned to shoot some off. But had I ventured down to the main road at midnight, the rockets would have been whizzing past my head — or worse. A year ago, family friends came home in the early-morning hours to find their apartment and those of 35 neighbors were uninhabitable after having their windows blown out by a so-called Kugelbombe, an illegal firework with explosive power on par with what's used in professional shows. This year, police arrested 430 people, 47 cars went up in flames and officers had to use water cannons to disperse a crowd that had built burning barricades on a central city street. On the edge of my neighborhood, about 150 people attacked police with bottles and fireworks, Berlin newspaper Tagesspiegel reported. And even responsibly used fireworks can cause less visible health impacts. They're a major source of particulate matter pollution, compounds that are tiny enough to get into the body and stick in the heart, brain and lungs. In Germany, the New Year's explosions account for almost 2% of total emissions of the tiniest and most dangerous particles less than 2.5 micrometers in diameter, according to the Environment Ministry. In Munich this year, particle pollution just after midnight at New Year's measured 24 times higher than when fireworks sales were prohibited during the Covid-19 pandemic, according to Environmental Action Germany. Particle pollution is harmful to lungs and hearts and can contribute to everything from irritation and coughing to asthma attacks to more serious outcomes, said William Barrett, who leads the American Lung Association's clean air policy work. "It can create real health emergencies," Barrett said.  In contrast to a major centralized firework show, informal fireworks in neighborhoods can cause more smoke at street level for a longer time, Barrett told me. Some fireworks can also emit heavy metals and aluminum.   Barrett advised that people with an existing condition such as asthma or a heart condition stay indoors, monitor symptoms and make sure any needed medication — such as an inhaler — is at hand.  "I think it's a matter of recognizing that some of the outcomes of these celebrations can be really damaging to some of your neighbors," he said.  I've long thought of the German attitude toward fireworks as being similar to the national aversion to a highway speed limit. Personal responsibility is supposed to ensure a potentially dangerous activity stays fun and safe for everyone. But the backlash is building. This year Berlin banned fireworks in four neighborhoods, something police credit for enabling more arrests and a safer night for many. A broader ban is still up for debate. As of Jan. 1, more than 3 million people had signed a Berlin police union petition for a ban on private fireworks.  This year we rose above the fray, watching from a colleague's top floor apartment where thankfully all the windows remained intact even as the nearby church towers disappeared in the smoke. And as night fell on New Year's Day, neighbor kids were still scavenging the playground for leftover bits of firework to set off. — Naomi Kresge What we're reading How testosterone fell out of favor in medicine — and how it came back, from Statnews. Why the new cannabis classification matters, the New York Times reports. Colorectal cancer awareness campaign drives diagnosis in Nigeria, Fierce Pharma reports. Contact Prognosis Health questions? Have a tip that we should investigate? Contact us at AskPrognosis@bloomberg.net. Follow us You received this message because you are subscribed to Bloomberg's Prognosis newsletter. If a friend forwarded you this message, sign up here to get it in your inbox. Unsubscribe Bloomberg.com Contact Us Bloomberg L.P. 731 Lexington Avenue New York, NY 10022 |