Wildfire smoke overtakes industrial pollution as top prenatal air quality threat

Wildfire smoke has emerged as a greater prenatal health threat than human-made sources of air pollution, according to new findings. Regulatory efforts over the years successfully reduced pregnant women's exposure to harmful industrial and vehicle emissions. However, the rising frequency and intensity of wildfires has offset much of that progress. The increasing smoke pollution now poses a significant risk to fetal development, undermining decades of air quality improvements.