'Church candles, incense may damage lungs'

[dArKeR]

Churchgoing may be good for the soul but it could also be dangerous for the lungs, according to a study published on Friday in the specialist European Respiratory Journal.

University of Maastricht researcher Theo de Kok and colleagues measured levels of fine particulates in the air of a small chapel and a local basilica after experiments in which they burned candles for nine hours and simulated a service in which incense was burned.

Fine particulate matter - defined as solid particles with a diameter of 10 microns or less - is a devil among air pollutants.

http://www.iol.co.za/index.php?set_id=1&click_id=31&art_id=qw1100882880723B262

[dave502d]

1. Where do we send them? n/t

[Voltaire99]

17. LOL!

Nice one.

[BiggJawn]

2. So, I wonder what it was like outside at the bus stop?

Right after the mid-town express roared away in a cloud of dead dinosaurs?

[DemBones DemBones]

11. Really! And my lungs always suffer in Europe --

old cities, narrow streets, auto exhausts, hack! hack! Air quality is not good.

[BiggJawn]

12. Do they still burn a lot of coal there?

Not just industry, but home heat and what-not?

[aquart]

3. Ahhh, that old time religion.

Never mind religion. We'll all be going back to candles and campfires soon.

[LiberalEsto]

5. It's sooooo much healthier

to sacrifice goats and chickens, don't you think? Who needs this wimpy candles-and-incense crap anyway?

:evilgrin: :evilgrin:

[PartyPooper]

4. Church-going and romantic candlelight dinners will never be the same.

:eyes:

[PATRICK]

9. Wearing gasmasks

might enhance that special blind date.

[alfredo]

14. My My aren't you a kinky one?

To each his own.

[Lydia Leftcoast]

15. Wearing gas masks on a date?

You MUST see the Israeli movie Yana's Friends if you get a chance.

[DoYouEverWonder]

6. Damn, my favorite part

was when the priest would start swinging the frankincense. They only do that for special occasions but god I swear you could get high off that stuff.

[Tracer]

7. High?

I sing in a church choir that's parked 20 feet from the swinging incence, and all that happens is that the choir members start coughing and choking Ñ ah yes, it does wonders for the hymns.

[DemBones DemBones]

10. Bad placement for the choir.

Bummer for you all.

[Lydia Leftcoast]

16. It is unnerving for the choir, especially if we haven't sung our

anthems yet.

Fortunately, my church uses incense only for special occasions, such as Christmas, Easter, and All Saint's Day.

Unfortunately, that's when we sing our biggest, most elaborate anthems. :-(

[Massachusetts]

8. Purple Haze

IcenseO8) and wine:evilgrin: what a combination:smoke:

[SOS]

13. Going to file this one under

"least of my worries".

[nolabels]

19. I was also worried people would never keep this kind of file

Thanks for the update :D

[VegasWolf]

18. That's okay, church damages your brain more. n/t