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EPA releases cataract prediction
WASHINGTON, Efforts to protect Earth's ozone layer will mean 22 million fewer cases of cataracts for Americans born between 1985 and 2100, a report predicts.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency marked the start of Cataract Awareness Month by releasing the report on the Montreal Protocol's provisions for reducing and eventually eliminating ozone-depleting substances, an agency release said Friday.
A healthy ozone layer absorbs harmful UV radiation from space that might otherwise reach Earth.
Too much UV radiation not only increases the risk for skin cancer, but also increases the risk for cataracts -- a clouding of the eye's lens that affects more than 20 million Americans age 40 and older.
Direct medical costs in the treatment of cataracts are estimated to be $6.8 billion per year.
"Since the 1970s, we have prevented millions of skin cancer cases and deaths through our work protecting the ozone layer," Gina McCarthy, assistant administrator for EPA's Office of Air and Radiation, said. "I am excited to kick off Cataract Awareness Month by announcing that the science has now enabled us to estimate our impact on cataracts."
Due to the success of the Montreal Protocol, the ozone layer is predicted to recover to pre-1980 levels after 2065, the EPA says.
WASHINGTON, Efforts to protect Earth's ozone layer will mean 22 million fewer cases of cataracts for Americans born between 1985 and 2100, a report predicts.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency marked the start of Cataract Awareness Month by releasing the report on the Montreal Protocol's provisions for reducing and eventually eliminating ozone-depleting substances, an agency release said Friday.
A healthy ozone layer absorbs harmful UV radiation from space that might otherwise reach Earth.
Too much UV radiation not only increases the risk for skin cancer, but also increases the risk for cataracts -- a clouding of the eye's lens that affects more than 20 million Americans age 40 and older.
Direct medical costs in the treatment of cataracts are estimated to be $6.8 billion per year.
"Since the 1970s, we have prevented millions of skin cancer cases and deaths through our work protecting the ozone layer," Gina McCarthy, assistant administrator for EPA's Office of Air and Radiation, said. "I am excited to kick off Cataract Awareness Month by announcing that the science has now enabled us to estimate our impact on cataracts."
Due to the success of the Montreal Protocol, the ozone layer is predicted to recover to pre-1980 levels after 2065, the EPA says.
