Robert Paine III, MD (Pulmonary) shares his insight on how fireworks and wildfires affect air quality and your health.

"How fireworks could cause Wasatch Front air quality to deteriorate"

"Fireworks in particular are a short-term, acute problem that comes for hours and then is gone," said Robert Paine, a physician who specializes in the respiratory system at the University of Utah Hospital. "But for many people with lung disease ... it's enough to trigger a problem that doesn't go away as soon as the pollution goes away. It can continue for a few days and even lead to trips to the emergency room." Click here to read the full article in the Salt Lake Tribune.

"What wildfires are doing to your family's health"

Dr. Robert Paine, a pulmonary and critical care specialist at the University of Utah School of Medicine, said his patients with asthma, bronchitis or chronic lung disease often experience a worsening of symptoms when a wildfire is nearby. There's not a "magic number" or specific distance from a fire that causes problems because the wind and the size of fire affect the smoke's dispersal and how long particles hang in the air. Click here to read the full article in the Deseret News.