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At 24 years old, Monica Lewinsky was in a scandal that defined who she was for the entire world.

And now, she's ready to draw from her own experience on what it means to redefine yourself on her new podcast, reclaiming with Monica Lewinsky.

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A series of devastating fires killed at least 29 people and destroyed thousands of homes in the Los Angeles area last month.

Now many people are wondering about the health effects of wildfire smoke. Toxic plumes of hazardous pollutants lingered over the region for weeks.

During that time, local hospitals reported a 16-fold increase in fire-related hospitalizations,

including for smoke inhalation. Even now, the resulting smoke damage continues to pose a

health risk, as people sift through the rubble of their lives or move back into homes affected by the fires.

Air quality is a problem for Americans, even beyond wildfire-prone areas. Nearly four in ten are

routinely exposed to unhealthy levels of air pollution.

That's according to a 2024 report from the American Lung Association.

Today, we're examining the effects of wildfire smoke and chronic air pollution on our health.

What sort of effect does it have on us in the short and long term?

I'm Jen White. You're listening to the 1A podcast where we get to the heart of the story.

Stay with us. We've got a lot to get into.

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Joining us from Seattle is Joan Casey. She's an associate professor of environmental and occupational

health sciences at the University of Washington.

Joan, welcome to 1A.

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