The Adverse Impact of Incense Smoke on Human Health: From Mechanisms to Implications

Incense burning is a very popular activity in daily life among many parts all over the world. A growing body of both epidemiological and experimental evidences has reported the negative effects of incense use on human well-being, posing a potential threat at public significance. This work is a comprehensive review that covers the latest findings regarding the adverse impact of incense smoke on our health, providing a panoramic visualization ranging from mechanisms to implications. The toxicities of incense smoke come directly from its harmful constituents and deposition capacity in the body. Besides, reactive oxygen species -driven oxidative stress and associated inflammation seem to be plausible underlying mechan-isms, eliciting various unfavorable responses. Although our current knowledge remains many gaps, this issue still has some important implications.

Automated summary

Research has shown that incense burning can have negative effects on human health, primarily due to harmful constituents and deposition in the body. Reactive oxygen species-driven oxidative stress and associated inflammation may be potential mechanisms, eliciting various unfavorable responses.