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

Chiang-Wen Lee; Thi Thuy Tien Vo; Yinshen Wee; Yao-Chang Chiang; Miao-Ching Chi; Min-Li Chen; Lee-Fen Hsu; Mei-Ling Fang; Kuan-Han Lee; Su-Er Guo; Hsin-Chung Cheng; I-Ta Lee

doi:10.2147/JIR.S332771

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

J Inflamm Res. 2021 Oct 22:14:5451-5472. doi: 10.2147/JIR.S332771. eCollection 2021.

Authors

Chiang-Wen Lee^#^{1

2

3

4}, Thi Thuy Tien Vo^#⁵, Yinshen Wee⁶, Yao-Chang Chiang^{1

2}, Miao-Ching Chi^{7

8

9}, Min-Li Chen^{10

11}, Lee-Fen Hsu^{9

12}, Mei-Ling Fang^{13

14}, Kuan-Han Lee¹⁵, Su-Er Guo¹¹, Hsin-Chung Cheng^{5

16}, I-Ta Lee⁵

Affiliations

¹ Department of Nursing, Division of Basic Medical Sciences, Chronic Diseases and Health Promotion Research Center and Research Center for Chinese Herbal Medicine, Chang Gung University of Science and Technology, Puzi City, Chiayi County, Taiwan.
² Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, Puzi City, Chiayi County, Taiwan.
³ Department of Safety Health and Environmental Engineering, Ming Chi University of Technology, New Taipei City, Taiwan.
⁴ College of Medicine, Chang Gung University, Taoyuan City, Taiwan.
⁵ School of Dentistry, College of Oral Medicine, Taipei Medical University, Taipei, Taiwan.
⁶ Department of Pathology, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT, USA.
⁷ Chronic Disease and Health Promotion Research Center, Chang Gung University of Science and Technology, Puzi City, Chiayi County, Taiwan.
⁸ Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, Chiayi Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, Puzi City, Chiayi County, Taiwan.
⁹ Department of Respiratory Care, Chang Gung University of Science and Technology, Puzi City, Chiayi County, Taiwan.
¹⁰ Department of Nursing, Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, Puzi City, Chiayi County, Taiwan.
¹¹ Graduate Institute of Nursing, Chang Gung University of Science and Technology, Puzi City, Chiayi County, Taiwan.
¹² Division of Neurosurgery, Department of Surgery, Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, Puzi City, Chiayi County, Taiwan.
¹³ Center for Environmental Toxin and Emerging-Contaminant Research, Cheng Shiu University, Kaohsiung, Taiwan.
¹⁴ Super Micro Research and Technology Center, Cheng Shiu University, Kaohsiung, Taiwan.
¹⁵ Department of Pharmacy, Chia Nan University of Pharmacy and Science, Tainan, Taiwan.
¹⁶ Department of Dentistry, Taipei Medical University Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan.

^# Contributed equally.

Abstract

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 mechanisms, eliciting various unfavorable responses. Although our current knowledge remains many gaps, this issue still has some important implications.

Keywords: cancer; incense burning; inflammation; oxidative stress; toxicants.

Publication types

Review

Grants and funding

This work is supported by the Taipei Medical University Hospital, grant number 110TMU-TMUH-14, the Chang Gung Medical Research Foundation, grant number CMRP6J0051, and the Chang Gung University of Science and Technology, grant number ZRRPF3L0091 and ZRRPF3K0111.