Studded tires may boost heart disease

LINKOPING, Sweden, Jan. 7 (UPI) -- Studded tires, used to improve traction on icy roads, may boost the heart attack rate for motorists or those living near highways, Swedish researchers say.

Anders Ljungman of Linkoping University in Sweden and colleagues say the small metal protrusions in the tires grind away at the road surface, generating dust believed to increase heart and respiratory disease.

In previous research, Ljungman and colleagues found road dust from studded tires caused biological changes in cells related to inflammation -- chronic inflammation can also lead to a host of diseases including hardening of the arteries that can lead to heart attack and stroke.

Studded tires are often used in Finland, Norway, Sweden and other northern countries, but they have been banned or restricted in others due to premature pavement damage. In the United States some states ban studded tires, some have restrictions and some allow studded tires.

The study, published in the journal Chemical Research in Toxicology, pinpoints specific changes in three proteins in cells related to the road dust exposure associated with increased inflammation.