Lung Health in my Hometown of Castleton NY 12033

 In last weeks Science Digest there was a report from researchers in England. It essentially was looking at health problems associated with living deep within river valley's.. Especially lung function.  It found in a nut shell that yes there were more lung and sinus problems with people living within river valleys , especially in the deeper parts of valleys. Well......that was no surprise to me. Doctor Austin was our local country doc. He graduated Med School in 1916 and soon came to Castleton to start his practice. He practiced actively untill circa 1970.  His office was located on upper Main Street in Castleton. Very near the Hudson River. One diagnosis he would often make was what he called Hudson River Gutar. In other words ,  a heavier amount of gunk in his patience's lungs , even when showing no other obvious symptoms. He told me at one point it appeared to worsen after World War One. He speculated it was the post WWI usage of cigarettes , a habit picked up while our troops were in Europe. Before that point it was mainly pipes and cigars. As a matter of fact Austin smoked cigars even while examining patients. Those days are long gone. Other factors were easy to determine as well. Up untill the late fifties people burned coal in there homes for heat. The Niagra Mohawk power plant across the river burned coal untill their conversion to natural gas in the early 60's. We still were industrial with paper mills , concrete plants , and detergent factories and Breweries within a 10 mile radius of the Castleton / Schodack NY area. I have heard older residents report that the foggy days are not as thick as they once were. Fewer pea soupers as they say in New England. Obviously with all the particulate matter in the air back then it makes sense. But despite a cleaner environment I suspect that this study has merit. Whether a river valley in England or the Hudson Valley in New York all places have their risks.