Wildfire Smoke

By: Dr. Toby Hallowitz, NMD

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My heart aches. I’m so full of emotions. I feel overwhelmed, sad and angry as I look out my window and see wildfire smoke blanketing Spokane Valley.  I feel helpless and completely vulnerable.  I am sure many of you feel this way as well. I bury my head in my hands, shed some tears. I realize my fortune. These fires are far enough away I’m spared for now, but I know we are all vulnerable. With climate change, we are seeing now what scientists have predicted. I vow to be strong and do my part, to do what I can. I care so much for this community, humans and the more-than-human world we are a part of – all the trees, plants, animals and wildlife we live amongst.  I can’t be weak; I have to be strong for my family and all I care about.

I will do my part. That includes creating a community permaculture garden, learning techniques for fire prevention and helping to spread the word and educate what we can all do to contribute to the health of the Inland Northwest. As I write this blog, I’m preparing for a herd of 125+ goats arriving on my property tomorrow to help eat and clear the brush. I know this is essential to help safeguard against fires. I’m also planning on attending the 2026 Spokane Permaculture Symposium on August 22nd and 23rd where reducing wildfire exposure will be a focus.  I will continue to explore other ways I can be a part of the solution and I urge you too – to look inside and see what you can do. In the despair and darkness I’m feeling within my core, I embrace a spark of light as I realize I can be of assistance to our community by offering my naturopathic expertise.

This blog will highlight what we can to do to protect ourselves and loved ones from the toxic effects of wildfire smoke.

Wildfire smoke is not simply the smoke of burning trees. The amount and composition of pollution emitted from a specific fire vary depending on the fire’s size, temperature of combustion, materials burned (e.g., grasses, tree species, buildings, vehicles), distance the smoke has traveled, and environmental conditions like wind speed, temperature, and humidity. When wildfires move through our modern communities they incinerate homes, vehicles, appliances, electronics, plastics, insulation, pesticides, and synthetic building materials.  The result is a complex chemical disaster, releasing benzene, formaldehyde, acrolein, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), heavy metals, and hundreds of toxic volatile organic compounds into the air. This is why health researchers increasingly classify urban wildfire events as chemical disasters, not natural ones. And it is why the health effects of wildfire smoke exposure extend far beyond the lungs.

PM is the abbreviation for particulate matter. Wildfire-specific PM2.5 is a term science uses to refer to the fraction of fine particulate matter (particles 2.5 micrometers or smaller in diameter) in the air that is directly generated by and attributed to wildfire smoke. 2.5 micrometers are about 30 times thinner than a strand of human hair. Many studies have indicated that PM2.5 raises more human health concerns than coarse PM because the smaller particles penetrate the respiratory system more deeply.

Wildfire smoke does not stay in your lungs. The fine particles and toxic gases it carry enter your bloodstream and travel to your heart, your brain, your hormonal system, and your reproductive organs. They cause damage in places that have nothing to do with your airways—and they do it without necessarily producing a single respiratory symptom.

Wildfire smoke symptoms beyond the lungs include:

• Persistent headaches and migraines
• Unusual fatigue and low energy
• Brain fog and difficulty concentrating
• Heart palpitations and irregular heartbeat
• Sleep disruption and morning congestion
• Worsening of existing cardiovascular conditions
• Hormonal irregularities

Wildfire Smoke and Respiratory Disease

Acute and long-term exposure often causes coughing, wheezing, and increased phlegm. Shortness of breath and chest tightness are common as is reduced lung function (even from a single day of exposure). This may manifest as acute bronchitis, asthma attacks and aggravation of other lung diseases including increased susceptibility to respiratory infections (including viruses and bacteria) — smoke impairs the lungs’ ability to clear inhaled pathogens. Eye irritation, burning, and redness also occur as well as throat and nasal passage inflammation.

Wildfire Smoke and Heart Disease

Wildfire smoke is a documented cardiovascular risk factor including increases in heart attacks, stroke and worsening heart failure. Once PM2.5 enters the bloodstream, it irritates blood vessel walls and strains the heart. A 2020 study published in the Journal of the American Heart Association found that exposure to heavy wildfire smoke raised the risk of out-of-hospital cardiac arrests by up to 70 percent—with the elevated risk peaking on the second day after smoke exposure, not the first. Following the January 2025 Los Angeles wildfires, a Cedars-Sinai study published in JACC found a 46 percent increase in heart attack emergency visits and a 24 percent increase in acute pulmonary illness in the 90 days following the fires, compared to the same period over the prior seven years.

Wildfire Smoke and Brain/Mental Health

Emerging research links wildfire smoke exposure to cognitive decline and impaired brain function. Studies show measurable drops in cognitive performance, including reaction time, attention and memory during smoke events. Ultrafine particles—those smaller than 0.1 microns—are small enough to cross the blood-brain barrier. Once they reach the brain, research suggests they may contribute to cognitive decline, neurological inflammation, and an increased risk of dementia and Alzheimer’s disease. Anxiety, depression, and PTSD are also strongly linked to wildfire events and sustained smoke exposure.

Wildfire Smoke and Testosterone

A large study of 72,917 men found that for every 10 μg/m³ increase in PM2.5 concentration, testosterone levels decreased by 1.6 percent—with effects persisting across 30-day cumulative exposure periods. Sustained moderate smoke exposure can quietly suppress testosterone without producing a single obvious symptom.

Wildfire Smoke and Pregnancy

Research from the Keck School of Medicine at the University of Southern California found that wildfire smoke exposure was associated with increased risk of adverse birth outcomes, including in the month before conception. A separate analysis of more than five million births in California found that higher wildfire PM2.5 at any stage of pregnancy was associated with a measurably higher risk of preterm birth. Pregnant women inhale approximately 40 percent more air than non-pregnant adults—meaning their exposure and the fetal exposure that comes with it is significantly elevated.

How to Protect Yourself:

• Stay indoors with windows closed during high AQI days
• Use HEPA air purifiers indoors
• Wear an N95 or KN95 mask (not a cloth mask) if you must go outside
• Monitor AirNow.gov for real-time AQI levels
• Avoid strenuous outdoor exercise when AQI exceeds 100
• Those with asthma or heart conditions should have an action plan ready with their provider

The Best Air Purifier for Wildfire Smoke

The best air purifier for wildfire smoke combines Medical Grade HEPA filtration with a substantial activated carbon bed. HEPA captures fine particles—including PM2.5 and ultrafine particles down to 0.1 microns. Activated carbon absorbs the gases, VOCs, and toxic chemicals that particles carry with them. Without both, you are addressing only part of the threat.  I have been using Austin Air filters for years – first as a medical student in Portland, OR and then in my home after a stove fire when I lived and worked in Western, NY – near Buffalo. These filters are actually made in Buffalo and I have been selling these filters to patients for over 20 years. Austin Air’s HealthMate Plus and Immunity Machine are specifically engineered for wildfire smoke chemical adsorption, using impregnated carbon and mineral-based filtration to target the specific compounds most prevalent in wildfire smoke.

https://austinairsystems.com/pages/the-wildfire-toolkit – we will offer 15% off through purchases through our clinic.

These Supplements are the Most Helpful for Detoxing and Helping Support the Body’s Healing from Wildfire Smoke.

These supplements will be 15% off as well.

• Zeolite: a naturally occurring negatively charged mineral found naturally in volcanic ash, acts as a molecular trap, binding to heavy metals, volatile organic compounds, and other positively charged toxins inhaled or ingested from wildfire smoke, facilitating their excretion through the gut before they can accumulate in tissues or enter systemic circulation. Additionally, zeolite’s ability to reduce the total toxic burden on the body helps dampen the chronic inflammatory and oxidative stress response triggered by repeated smoke exposure.
• Glutathione: Known as the body’s “master antioxidant” — is a tripeptide (glycine, cysteine, glutamate) produced endogenously in every cell and is the primary intracellular defense against the massive oxidative burden imposed by wildfire smoke’s PM2.5, heavy metals, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), and volatile organic compounds, directly neutralizing free radicals, regenerating other antioxidants like vitamins C and E, and supporting the liver’s Phase II detoxification enzymes that conjugate and excrete smoke-derived toxins. Because wildfire smoke exposure rapidly depletes the body’s endogenous glutathione reserves — particularly in lung epithelial cells and red blood cells — supplementation with liposomal glutathione or its precursor N-acetylcysteine (NAC) helps replenish these critical stores, restore mitochondrial function in stressed respiratory cells, reduce systemic inflammation driven by smoke toxin accumulation, and support the immune system’s ability to clear the particulate-laden macrophages that congregate in lung tissue during and after smoke events. Look for “liposomal” delivery options for better absorption.
• NAC (N-Acetyl Cysteine): Acts as a powerful mucolytic to thin out and help your lungs clear trapped mucus and particulates. It also serves as the direct chemical building block for glutathione.
• Specialized Pro Resolving Mediators (SPMs): Specialized pro-resolving mediators (SPMs) — including resolvins, protectins, and maresins — are lipid-based signaling molecules derived from omega-3 fatty acids that actively resolve inflammation triggered by wildfire smoke toxins and PM2.5 particles, helping to restore lung and vascular tissue without suppressing the immune response entirely. By promoting the clearance of cellular debris, reducing oxidative stress, and encouraging tissue repair, SPMs help the body transition from the acute inflammatory response caused by smoke exposure back to a state of physiological balance — a process increasingly recognized as critical for preventing chronic respiratory and cardiovascular damage from repeated wildfire events.
• Omega-3 Fatty Acids: Sourced from high-quality fish oils, omega-3s actively reduce lung inflammation, protect cardiovascular health, and improve overall respiratory function under high pollution loads.
• Quercetin: A natural flavonoid which acts as a dual-action antioxidant and mast cell stabilizer, directly scavenging the reactive oxygen species generated by wildfire smoke’s PM2.5 and chemical toxins while simultaneously inhibiting the release of histamine and pro-inflammatory cytokines (including IL-6, IL-8, and TNF-α) that drive the bronchial swelling, airway hyperreactivity, and systemic inflammation triggered by smoke exposure. Quercetin also inhibits the NF-κB signaling pathway and has demonstrated the ability to upregulate the body’s own antioxidant enzymes (such as superoxide dismutase and glutathione peroxidase), effectively amplifying the body’s intrinsic defense systems against the oxidative and inflammatory cascade caused by both acute and chronic wildfire smoke inhalation.
• Boswellia: (Boswellia serrata) contains active compounds called boswellic acids — particularly AKBA (acetyl-11-keto-β-boswellic acid) — that specifically inhibit the 5-lipoxygenase (5-LOX) enzyme, a key driver of the inflammatory cascade triggered by PM2.5 and toxic gases from wildfire smoke, supporting bronchial airway patency, reducing inflammatory swelling in respiratory tissue, and helping to protect the vascular endothelium from oxidative damage caused by smoke-derived free radicals.
• Saffron: (Crocus sativus) contains two powerful bioactive compounds — crocin and crocetin — that function as potent antioxidants and anti-inflammatory agents, neutralizing the reactive oxygen species (ROS) and free radicals generated by PM2.5 and volatile organic compounds from wildfire smoke, thereby protecting lung epithelial cells, red blood cells, and vascular tissue from oxidative damage. Saffron also modulates the NF-κB inflammatory signaling pathway and has demonstrated neuroprotective effects, making it particularly valuable during wildfire smoke exposure for simultaneously shielding the respiratory tract from inflammatory injury while guarding the brain against the cognitive impairment and neuroinflammation increasingly associated with sustained particulate matter inhalation. Saffron is also one of my favorite herbal supplements to support cognitive function and mood support, including depression and anxiety.
• Curcumin (Turmeric): The active compound in turmeric offers neuroprotective benefits against heavy metals found in smoke and blocks the inflammatory pathways triggered by toxins including helping with neuroinflammation and supporting positive mood. It is one of the most well-studied natural inhibitors of NF-κB, the master inflammatory signaling switch activated by PM2.5, heavy metals, and volatile organic compounds in wildfire smoke, effectively suppressing the downstream production of pro-inflammatory cytokines (IL-1β, IL-6, TNF-α) and COX-2 enzymes that drive bronchial inflammation, endothelial damage, and systemic oxidative stress.
• Vitamin C: It is rapidly consumed in lung fluid and plasma during wildfire smoke exposure, and supplementation helps replenish these depleted reserves to neutralize PM2.5-generated free radicals, regenerate oxidized vitamin E and glutathione back to their active forms, and reduce the histamine and pro-inflammatory cytokine release that drives the bronchial inflammation, vascular damage, and immune dysregulation caused by inhaled smoke toxins.
• Vitamin E & Carotenoids: Clinical reviews suggest these fat-soluble vitamins work synergistically to protect lung airways and mitigate pollution-induced damage that triggers asthma or COPD flare-ups.
• Sulforaphane: Found naturally in broccoli sprouts, this compound activates the Nrf2 pathway in cellular tissue, which has shown protective benefits specifically against smoke inhalation.
• Mullein Leaf Extract: An herbal supplement which soothe and coat inflamed airways, loosen particulate-laden mucus for expulsion, and support the lungs’ natural mucociliary clearance mechanism, making it one of the most directly targeted botanical remedies for the bronchial irritation, congestion, and coughing triggered by wildfire smoke exposure.