August 5, 2008

Occupational Health and Safety

McMaster study looks at link between diesel fumes and diabetes

VINCE VERSACE

staff writer

The operating engineers’ union supports a study looking at possible connections between diesel fume exposure and diabetes among its members.

“Diesel fume exposure has been a concern for some time,” says Mike Gallagher, business manager of International Union of Operating Engineers Local 793. ‘Some equipment is poorly designed, with smoke stacks in front of the operators who are out in the open” and not in a cab.

Gallagher was advised that the research advisory council of the Workplace Safety and Insurance Board (WSIB) has approved $217,200 in funding for the study by Dr. Murray Finkelstein, an associate professor at Hamilton’s McMaster University and a medical consultant with the Ontario Ministry of Labour. Dr. Dave Verma, an occupational hygienist and professor at McMaster, will be the co-investigator on the project with Finkelstein.

“The objective of this research is thus to study the prevalence of heart disease and diabetes in relation to diesel exhaust exposure while controlling for personal risk factors such as smoking and obesity,” Finkelstein wrote in his funding submission.

A previous study of Local 793 members, completed by Finkelstein, concluded that heavy equipment operators in Ontario were significantly more likely to die from diabetes than were other types of construction workers in the province.

Another analysis revealed that Ontario’s heavy equipment operators had ischemic heart disease mortality rates 32 per cent higher than other types of construction workers. However, neither study had included data such as smoking and obesity. Finkelstein concluded that additional research was needed to determine if exposure to diesel exhaust is the reason, explains Gallagher.

“We believe there could be a connection between diabetes and heart disease and exposure to diesel fumes and if this proves to be true, we can then inform regulators and manufacturers as to what needs to be done,” says Gallagher.

A questionnaire will be mailed out this fall to approximately 6,500 Local 793 members aged 45 and older to find out such things as whether or not a member has ever been diagnosed with diabetes, angina, a heart attack, or stroke and gather data about risk factors like weight, smoking and cholesterol.

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