Last month even before summer began smoke from Canadian wildfires triggered air quality

alerts in the upper Midwest and Great Plains and at the same time fires in Mexico affected

air quality along the Gulf Coast from Texas to Florida.

It all brought back memories of last year's record-setting fires in Canada that set a haze of smoke

drifting over the Midwest and East Coast.

Smoke from wildfires hundreds of miles away

is still a health threat.

A recent National Bureau of Economic Research Analysis

says it contributes to nearly 16,000 deaths a year.

Laura Kate Bender leads the Healthy Air Campaign for the American Lung Association.

Laura Kate, what is in wildfire smoke that makes it so hazardous?

One of the main components of wildfire smoke that's so dangerous is fine particle pollution.

These tiny bits of stuff can get deep into your lungs, and if they're're small enough they can even get into your

bloodstream when they cause a host of health harms. There's a bunch of other

harmful chemicals in wildfire smoke too, particularly if it's burning houses, cars and

other things from built structures.

Is that just as dangerous if the fires hundreds of miles away

or if the fires down the street?

Neither is safe.

It can change the composition, it can change the mix, but the fact remains that people,

whether they're close to the fire or far away,

should both take precautions.

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