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Air pollution is a year-long threat to the health of Canadians, says the Heart and Stroke Foundation, yet only 13 per cent of Canadians believe it can contribute to heart disease.

The Foundation says that every year, there are approximately 6,000 additional deaths in Canada because of short term exposure to air pollution. While almost two-thirds of Canadians believe that air quality has a major effect on health, not many associate pollution with heart disease, according to the poll that the Foundation commissioned.

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When the sample of 1,134 Canadians was asked to name diseases affected by air pollution, 82 per cent named respiratory diseases and 34 per cent selected cancer. But only 13 per cent named heart disease.

It was only when air pollution was linked to smoking that Canadians appeared to understand the risk: 68 per cent strongly agreed with the statement: "Like smoking, air pollution is a risk for heart disease and stroke."

Stephen Samis, director of health policy for the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada, notes that even Canadians who make healthy lifestyle choices are at risk of heart disease because of the air they breathe.

"We can encourage Canadians to make lifestyle changes to reduce their risk, but air pollution is a pervasive and unavoidable health risk for heart disease that all Canadians face -- and most are unaware of its short and long-term impact," he said in a statement.

The survey also found that 61 per cent of respondents do not let smog advisories affect what they do outdoors. Yet, everyone should, says cardiologist and Heart and Stroke Foundation spokesperson Dr. Beth Abramson.

"Poor air quality represents a particular challenge for our aging population and those at increased risk of heart disease," says Abramson. "It's ironic that people who are recovering from − or are trying to prevent − heart disease by being physically active may actually be exposing themselves to more risk on bad air days if they head outdoors to be active."

Dispelling pollution myths

Part of the problem, the Foundation says, may be that many Canadians do not see that air pollution as affecting their communities. Six out of 10 Canadians (64 per cent) believe the quality of air in their community is generally good to excellent -- even though all parts of the country have some degree of increased cardiovascular risk because of air pollution.

Those living in the Prairie provinces are most likely to believe their air quality is good (84 per cent), followed by those in Atlantic Canada (75 per cent) and British Columbia (71 per cent). The air quality confidence levels were lowest in Quebec (59 per cent) and Ontario (53 per cent).

Seven out of 10 Canadians are also under the mistaken impression that air pollution tends to be worse during the summer, the survey found. Only three per cent recognized that air pollution is a year-round problem.

The Foundation notes that during the winter months, wood-burning stoves and fireplaces can be sources of dangerous air pollution, responsible for 28 per cent of fine particulate matter pollution in Canada. They can also release other pollutants, such as carbon monoxide and volatile organic compounds.

According to the Heart and Stroke Foundation survey, 44 per cent of Canadians living in communities of fewer than 10,000, report having a wood stove, pellet stove or fireplace. Of those, 70 per cent say they use it daily or almost every day during the winter.

Samis recommends that those Canadians who choose wood-heating as their heat source, should choose a stove approved by the Canadian Standards Association (CSA) or by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), since they are built to limit harmful emissions.

The Heart and Stroke Foundation says it would also like to see a Air Quality Health Index, such as the one being used in Toronto, Nova Scotia and British Columbia pilots. Such an index would give all Canadians access to easy-to-understand information on daily air quality and clear recommendations on when and how to limit their exposure.

As well, it would like to see:

• Strengthened federal and provincial legislation governing air quality
• Public awareness and incentive programs to encourage consumer and industry action to reduce air pollution
• Increased investment in public transit within and between urban centres across the country, including investments in high speed rail in the Quebec City-Ottawa-Windsor corridor, and between Edmonton and Calgary
• The creation of neighbourhoods and communities that promote walking, cycling and decrease auto dependency
• The allocation at least seven per cent of federal transportation-related infrastructure spending to active transportation infrastructure that facilitates walking and cycling, to reduce auto dependency and air pollution.