Assessment of Immediate health impacts of temperature and PM2.5 in urban residential areas of southern Taiwan.

Rapid urbanization has led to increased population density and more impermeable paving and buildings, causing heat to accumulate on the ground and building shells, resulting in a continuous rise in urban temperatures. Studies have shown that environmental meteorological parameters and air pollutants interact, and air pollution concentrations also have a cumulative effect with environmental factors such as temperature, wind field, and rainfall, impacting human health.

 

This study aimed to investigate the immediate effects of wet-bulb black bulb concentration (WBGT) and temperature on heart rate variability (HRV) and heart rate in participants. A simple, portable device was used to monitor PM_2.5 and other environmental factors. The correlation between temperature and residents' health status was analyzed, with separate analyses conducted for summer and winter-spring seasons to examine the seasonal health impacts.