:00:00. > :00:08.This week, the link between diesel fumes and asthma.
:00:09. > :00:10.And the woman boxer who had to fight to
:00:11. > :00:30.On tonight's programme, researchers looked at the
:00:31. > :00:32.link between traffic pollution and asthma.
:00:33. > :00:34.Could diesel fumes actually cause some people to develop asthma?
:00:35. > :00:38.that his asthma is linked to pollution.
:00:39. > :00:50.Also tonight, here in York, they've introduced
:00:51. > :00:53.antipollution measures but over in Germany's screen city,
:00:54. > :00:57.You have to buy a parking space and that will cost,
:00:58. > :01:03.A world champion boxer meets another
:01:04. > :01:06.world champion boxer who had to fight to be accepted.
:01:07. > :01:08.I think, those days, they didn't want girls to play
:01:09. > :01:20.You know, because girls don't do this and girls don't do that.
:01:21. > :01:25.Could traffic pollution be causing children to develop asthma?
:01:26. > :01:27.Certainly, pollution is something you can't get awa
:01:28. > :01:31.Researchers have been to Bradford to study the link between asthma,
:01:32. > :01:34.and emissions from diesel vehicles and they've talked to our health
:01:35. > :01:40.You can barely see it but polluted air, mainly from traffic,
:01:41. > :01:48.It's been linked to Alzheimer's, heart attacks, even cancer.
:01:49. > :01:52.But the most common air quality ailment is asthma.
:01:53. > :01:57.I've never been strangled but I can sort of related
:01:58. > :02:03.Even though what happened to Cameron couldn't have been prevented,
:02:04. > :02:06.there is a lot of people out there that if they don't
:02:07. > :02:12.take their asthma seriously, this could happen to them too.
:02:13. > :02:14.Inner city Bradford has both high levels of air pollution,
:02:15. > :02:16.and a higher than average number of asthma sufferers.
:02:17. > :02:23.So there's a strong chance the two are connected.
:02:24. > :02:25.The numbers involved could mean pollution is actually causing
:02:26. > :02:31.But so far no one's been able to confirm this.
:02:32. > :02:34.Scientists have suspected it, parents have suspected it,
:02:35. > :02:38.the evidence was never considered sufficient.
:02:39. > :02:42.The challenge for scientists is to prove the link,
:02:43. > :02:46.and to find out which elements of the cocktail of noxious gases
:02:47. > :02:53.spilling out of this traffic may be triggering asthma attacks.
:02:54. > :02:59.At this inner city Bradford playgroup, traffic's a part of life.
:03:00. > :03:07.Bradford is quite a busy, built-up area and where we live
:03:08. > :03:14.I don't drive. I walk everywhere.
:03:15. > :03:17.So, I can't not go near a main road in the middle of Bradford.
:03:18. > :03:20.Unfortunately, asthma's a part of life too.
:03:21. > :03:21.Joanne's six-year-old son is seriously affected.
:03:22. > :03:29.The hospital are trying to control it as best they can.
:03:30. > :03:32.You think it's brought on something else, like the weather
:03:33. > :03:38.Nobody's ever said to me that his asthma is linked to pollution.
:03:39. > :03:40.If somebody did tell me that then, obviously,...
:03:41. > :03:48.Scientists from Leeds and Barcelona are in Bradford to look
:03:49. > :03:53.at whether vehicle emissions can cause asthma.
:03:54. > :03:56.One of them is taking me for a walk as he measures pollution.
:03:57. > :04:01.This machine detects ultra-fine particulate matter,
:04:02. > :04:05.too small to see, but spilling out of vehicle exhausts.
:04:06. > :04:08.We are seeing traffic queueing up here.
:04:09. > :04:14.You can see the engines are working harder when you're driving up this
:04:15. > :04:18.hill so actually it's probably going to be the traffic on the other
:04:19. > :04:22.side of the road that's making more of the contribution.
:04:23. > :04:26.When you see it there, over 100,000, is that bad for us?
:04:27. > :04:34.These are the particles that go deep into your lungs.
:04:35. > :04:37.If it's at all possible it would be better to avoid walking along very
:04:38. > :04:45.The other thing I notice is you only need a bus to go
:04:46. > :04:50.past and look at that, it jumped right up.
:04:51. > :04:52.Yeah, well, most of the vehicles producing this pollution
:04:53. > :05:01.Also, all the diesel cars that we have in the UK
:05:02. > :05:10.A colleague has been feeding these readings into a computer.
:05:11. > :05:16.We put all this information in our software that can estimate
:05:17. > :05:18.the pollution concentrations over the network using the data.
:05:19. > :05:21.What we end up with is something like this.
:05:22. > :05:26.This is an air pollution map in Bradford that shows the red
:05:27. > :05:28.is the highest and the blue is the lowest.
:05:29. > :05:29.That's showing it is really concentrated
:05:30. > :05:32.And then radiates out on the main roads.
:05:33. > :05:37.So, where the traffic is, you get high concentrations
:05:38. > :05:48.You can overlay these maps with locations of interest.
:05:49. > :05:51.Like residents' addresses, for children you have health data on.
:05:52. > :05:53.And effectively show how much risk somebody is exposed to.
:05:54. > :06:00.Haneen now needs to find children who have been exposed to pollution.
:06:01. > :06:03.But she also needs to spot, and make allowances for, other
:06:04. > :06:09.She's going to need some really detailed medical histories.
:06:10. > :06:11.And to get this level of information,
:06:12. > :06:18.This city has become a hub of environmental research.
:06:19. > :06:21.Thanks to a health study that started ten years ago
:06:22. > :06:29.Born in Bradford is one of the largest research studies in UK.
:06:30. > :06:34.What we've been able to do is track the health of families from children
:06:35. > :06:37.being babies to children being aged eight to nine and we will continue
:06:38. > :06:45.Today it's cognitive ability - the 12,000 children involved have
:06:46. > :06:48.been tested and measured for many things throughout their lives,
:06:49. > :06:51.not just about health, but about where they live.
:06:52. > :06:54.We've done a lot of work Within the city looking
:06:55. > :07:01.That's really powerful information that we can give.
:07:02. > :07:07.Asthma is a disease that affects all ages -
:07:08. > :07:10.around five and half million people in the UK.
:07:11. > :07:13.It's like somebody has got hold of the windpipe
:07:14. > :07:22.I've never been strangled but I could sort of relate it
:07:23. > :07:24.to somebody who was getting strangled and gasping for breath.
:07:25. > :07:27.Had a couple of asthma attacks where my wife's had
:07:28. > :07:33.And she told me off because I didn't wake her up but I couldn't
:07:34. > :07:40.Neil's asthma is now under control, but a significant number are not
:07:41. > :07:47.so lucky, over 1000 people every year die of the disease.
:07:48. > :07:50.Three years ago one of those was ten-year-old
:07:51. > :08:09.He wasn't wheezing, he wasn't coughing.
:08:10. > :08:11.He was just happy, bouncing around, crazy little Cameron, as normal.
:08:12. > :08:14.I waved him off to his team, within 15 mins,
:08:15. > :08:23.By the time the ambulance got to him, he was already
:08:24. > :08:33.His mum and her partner have set up a charity in his memory,
:08:34. > :08:35.delivering spare inhalers to primary schools.
:08:36. > :08:39.to Cameron could not have been prevented,
:08:40. > :08:41.There's a lot of people out there, if they don't
:08:42. > :08:45.take their asthma seriously, this could happen to them.
:08:46. > :08:48.Haneen's research is not yet complete - but preliminary findings
:08:49. > :08:57.already suggest emissions from diesel cars may be to blame.
:08:58. > :09:02.Exhaust pollutants, specifically linked to traffic,
:09:03. > :09:03.for example nitrogen dioxide and black carbon,
:09:04. > :09:07.A child could not have got asthma if they were not
:09:08. > :09:09.exposed and that has a lot of implications, obviously.
:09:10. > :09:12.The research results may prove useful.
:09:13. > :09:16.In recent years it's been government policy to encourage diesel cars -
:09:17. > :09:20.there were 12 million on the road as of last year.
:09:21. > :09:24.But there are now calls for next month's new air pollution strategy
:09:25. > :09:32.Local authorities also have a role to play.
:09:33. > :09:35.Bradford and other West Yorkshire councils have agreed
:09:36. > :09:41.It includes turning the county's most polluted hotspots
:09:42. > :09:48.And this bit makes interesting reading.
:09:49. > :09:51.There's a commitment to convert West Yorkshire's entire fleet
:09:52. > :09:57.of buses to low emission standards within five years.
:09:58. > :10:00.Using some of the Bradford information they've worked out this
:10:01. > :10:03.will prevent around 500 children from developing asthma.
:10:04. > :10:05.No consolation for those already affected.
:10:06. > :10:09.I do feel quite angry about it, to be quite honest.
:10:10. > :10:25.If something could be done, fantastic, but it might be too late.
:10:26. > :10:27.And, of course, if you've got any comments about tonight's programme
:10:28. > :10:30.or you've got a story you think we might like to cover,
:10:31. > :10:34.you can get in touch on Facebook or on Twitter.
:10:35. > :10:49.Later in the programme, she was known as the Mighty Atom.
:10:50. > :10:52.We meet a Hull boxing legend you may never have heard of.
:10:53. > :10:55.So, how can we reduce pollution for all of our benefit?
:10:56. > :10:56.Here in York, there's a pedestrianised zone
:10:57. > :10:58.like Stonegate, there are electric buses, there are park-and-ride
:10:59. > :11:01.schemes and, yet, pollution levels are still above the recommended
:11:02. > :11:04.Could we learn something from our European neighbours?
:11:05. > :11:09.Chris Jackson has been investigating.
:11:10. > :11:12.A normal day in York - thousands of motorists queuing their way
:11:13. > :11:23.Some come to work and thousands more come
:11:24. > :11:30.And all that influx of visitors comes at a cost.
:11:31. > :11:32.The latest figures suggest that air pollution is contributing
:11:33. > :11:38.People aren't dropping down dead in the streets.
:11:39. > :11:40.But according to health experts, the long term impact,
:11:41. > :11:43.particularly on those already in poor health,
:11:44. > :11:55.We know that an estimated 30,000, minimum, maybe, 40,000 die across
:11:56. > :11:58.the UK, of that proportion in York, were probably looking at somewhere
:11:59. > :12:04.So, you know, an average of 100 people dying
:12:05. > :12:08.in York from air pollution related causes.
:12:09. > :12:10.I didn't think York was so badly affected by air pollution,
:12:11. > :12:14.It has got a bit of a problem, to be fair.
:12:15. > :12:17.I thought this was in the countryside.
:12:18. > :12:20.But for asthmatics like Ruth Smith who lives
:12:21. > :12:24.in nearby Leeds, poorer quality has an immediate impact on her health.
:12:25. > :12:28.I'm conscious of the fact that I'm walking in between exhausts
:12:29. > :12:31.and things like that and you can feel it on your chest.
:12:32. > :12:35.I'm constantly covering up my face being conscious
:12:36. > :12:40.That isn't necessarily as clean as what I'd like it to be
:12:41. > :12:46.You actually see air pollution as a problem?
:12:47. > :12:51.I can't tell you which patients are in the hospital because
:12:52. > :12:54.they've had problems with air pollution but there will be some
:12:55. > :12:55.where it's been a significant contributory factor.
:12:56. > :13:02.When you're exposed to exhaust fumes, particularly the fine
:13:03. > :13:06.particulates, then there is an acute risk to you if you have a background
:13:07. > :13:08.of heart problems, lung problems, it significantly increases your risk
:13:09. > :13:10.of having something like a heart attack or a stroke.
:13:11. > :13:16.So, in your view, should we try and reduce air pollution.
:13:17. > :13:18.Well, absolutely we should, both to aid people's normal
:13:19. > :13:20.health and development when they are young
:13:21. > :13:23.and for the elderly but also for the rest of us the risk of that
:13:24. > :13:30.Today academics are testing air quality -
:13:31. > :13:32.here in the pedestrian zone it's generally good -
:13:33. > :13:35.but when they take their equipment to this idling van -
:13:36. > :13:38.Yeah. That's smelly.
:13:39. > :13:46.I don't really want to be standing in this.
:13:47. > :13:48.We're up at 2000, 3000 particulate matter.
:13:49. > :13:51.That's way above the safe level for exposure to diesel particulates
:13:52. > :13:53.of 20 to 30 microgrammes per cubic metre.
:13:54. > :13:57.But can we do more to avoid city centre pollution?
:13:58. > :14:00.You can do small things like walk on the other side of the road
:14:01. > :14:03.if you are walking past a queue of traffic, just by crossing over
:14:04. > :14:06.the road you are exposing yourself to less particulates and less
:14:07. > :14:09.chemicals in the air you can also walk down less busy streets.
:14:10. > :14:13.York sees tackling air pollution as a high priority -
:14:14. > :14:16.it has park and ride schemes, a fleet of electric buses
:14:17. > :14:23.but the air here still breaches safety standards.
:14:24. > :14:26.Air pollution is a serious problem because we are currently breaching
:14:27. > :14:31.and we have three air quality management areas
:14:32. > :14:33.where we have a legal duty to improve air quality.
:14:34. > :14:36.So York is trying harder than most to
:14:37. > :14:55.is one of the most environmentally friendly cities in Europe.
:14:56. > :14:57.The trams run like clockwork and only half of the City's
:14:58. > :15:03.About the same size as York with a population around 200,000
:15:04. > :15:08.the city here has introduced some strict policies to get
:15:09. > :15:11.cars off its streets - it's also improved the air quality
:15:12. > :15:15.Christophe Lang sold his car ten years ago -
:15:16. > :15:19.I joined him on his daily commute back home from work by bike.
:15:20. > :15:25.So it was an old car and when it broke we give it away.
:15:26. > :15:40.So when it's raining and it's wintery,
:15:41. > :15:44.the snow, there's wind, there's rain, what do you do?
:15:45. > :15:49.If it's short way, I go by bike if it's a long way then I use
:15:50. > :15:56.The Langs live in the Vauban suburb - nothing particularly
:15:57. > :16:04.but look and listen a little closer - what's missing?
:16:05. > :16:09.This is the greenest part of the Green City -
:16:10. > :16:12.it's a former army barracks that's been transformed
:16:13. > :16:17.into a suburb - and they've planned it in such a way that residents
:16:18. > :16:24.With speed limits set to walking pace - they've
:16:25. > :16:26.also introduced a novel, if not pricey way
:16:27. > :16:31.If you want to own a house that's fine -
:16:32. > :16:33.but if you also want to own a car,
:16:34. > :16:35.you have to buy a parking space and that will cost,
:16:36. > :16:44.Do many people have a car then in this part of town?
:16:45. > :16:47.Not so many, no because, and that was the idea
:16:48. > :16:50.from the very beginning that this is an excellent opportunity
:16:51. > :16:54.for people to explore life without a car.
:16:55. > :16:57.Do we know what proportion of people in Vauban own a car then?
:16:58. > :17:09.Yeah, it's much fewer people owning a car than average
:17:10. > :17:11.in the rest of Freiburg, it's about half the number.
:17:12. > :17:15.The ratio of cars per 1000 inhabitants is 165.
:17:16. > :17:18.None of this would have been possible without political pressure
:17:19. > :17:21.and huge investment from the local council.
:17:22. > :17:25.Do you have any evidence that by taking some of the cars
:17:26. > :17:27.out the city that pollution, air quality is improved in the city?
:17:28. > :17:37.We have good results in the last ten years in Freiburg we reduced
:17:38. > :17:46.So what lessons do you think we could learn from you?
:17:47. > :17:50.Two big factors, one is you have to have pressure to change something
:17:51. > :17:53.if you don't feel pressure to change you will never change anything.
:17:54. > :18:10.Secondly, you have to have alternatives.
:18:11. > :18:15.Now you might expect self-proclaimed petrol head Bernd Obrecht to be
:18:16. > :18:34.I use it only for special reasons I normally I take
:18:35. > :18:43.So do you agree with the policy of trying to persuade people
:18:44. > :18:50.It's the right way but I think they should take it a bit harder.
:18:51. > :18:59.Pollution is still big in Germany every year 40,000 people
:19:00. > :19:04.are dying of pollution and that is too much -
:19:05. > :19:14.so my heart is for cars and my brain says we have to change it.
:19:15. > :19:16.So it seems there is a real determination
:19:17. > :19:19.to improve air quality here in Germany -
:19:20. > :19:22.but back in the UK - are we prepared to pay
:19:23. > :19:28.through the nose for the privilege of keeping our cars.
:19:29. > :19:30.If you want to own a house, that's fine.
:19:31. > :19:34.But if you want to own a car, you have to pay for a parking space.
:19:35. > :19:36.Do you think that would be OK over here?
:19:37. > :19:39.I don't think the culture here is ready for that.
:19:40. > :19:54.You might as well get a taxi everywhere then.
:19:55. > :20:03.So still a long way to go before we follow the Germans' lead -
:20:04. > :20:06.but with growing pressure to tackle air pollution in our
:20:07. > :20:15.towns and cities - doing nothing is not an option.
:20:16. > :20:18.She trained in the same gym as Muhammad Ali -
:20:19. > :20:22.and entered Florida's Boxing Hall of Fame.
:20:23. > :20:25.same gym but many people, even in Barbara Buttrick's home city
:20:26. > :20:29.We sent Johnny Nelson, the former world
:20:30. > :20:37.To become the best boxer in the world takes commitment.
:20:38. > :20:39.And as an undefeated champion, I know how hard
:20:40. > :20:45.But for one fighter, the toughest battle was just trying
:20:46. > :20:52.But Barbara Buttrick went on to become the world's
:20:53. > :20:54.first women's boxing champion - and trained in the same
:20:55. > :21:01.Under five foot tall - she was known as the Mighty Atom.
:21:02. > :21:04.She now lives in Miami Beach - but she grew up in Yorkshire.
:21:05. > :21:07.Back in those days they didn't want girls to play soccer.
:21:08. > :21:13.It was girls don't do this and girls don't do that.
:21:14. > :21:17.Now 87, it's more than 70 years since Barbara Buttrick
:21:18. > :21:21.fell in love with boxing, living in Cottingham, near Hull.
:21:22. > :21:26.On my bedroom wall, as a kid, I had all boxers.
:21:27. > :21:30.So I bought myself a harness thing, that you put a football in and made
:21:31. > :21:39.But an article inspired her to make it her career.
:21:40. > :21:41.Your friend's mother gave you some newspaper to clean your boots.
:21:42. > :21:47.That's the newspaper clipping and it tells of Polly Burns,
:21:48. > :21:50.who travelled with the boxing booths.
:21:51. > :21:53.I thought if she can do it, so can I.
:21:54. > :21:59.but boxer by night, Barbara headed for London to find
:22:00. > :22:07.I think all this talk about girls not boxing is old-fashioned.
:22:08. > :22:09.Girls aren't the delicate flowers they used to be.
:22:10. > :22:14.In fact Barbara's boyfriend was her trainer -
:22:15. > :22:20.And at Mickey Wood's gym in London, she finally found
:22:21. > :22:30.But you've still got that fight in your eye.
:22:31. > :22:33.Soon, Barbara was making headlines - though none of them very positive.
:22:34. > :22:41.The criticism. Did it bother you?
:22:42. > :22:46.Mickey Wood says "we made the front page again,
:22:47. > :22:48.I said but "yeah look what they're saying."
:22:49. > :22:53.But in 1940s Britain, opinions like that were nothing out
:22:54. > :23:01.It was seen as something that was on a par with getting drunk
:23:02. > :23:03.and with gambling and with prostitution and it was
:23:04. > :23:07.Why do you think there was such a strong reaction
:23:08. > :23:13.It goes with being big, with being strong, with being brave.
:23:14. > :23:17.All these things which make up our ideal of masculinity,
:23:18. > :23:22.but femininity is not made up in those ways, so for Barbara
:23:23. > :23:25.to have boxed was seen as threatening, because boxing
:23:26. > :23:31.is associated with all the things that go with being a real man.
:23:32. > :23:34.So she took to fighting any woman who'd challenge her,
:23:35. > :23:38.in travelling fairground boxing booths.
:23:39. > :23:41.Nobody would encourage it and they were so down on it
:23:42. > :23:45.I guess they put the other girls completely off.
:23:46. > :23:49.You could have easily decided to play it safe and get a job.
:23:50. > :23:51.So fed up of fairgrounds, Barbara searched further afield
:23:52. > :23:54.for opponents - and that took her to America.
:23:55. > :23:57.Barbara travelled from state to state -
:23:58. > :24:02.There was one fight that I lost with Jo-ann Hagan.
:24:03. > :24:18.And in 1957 came the moment she'd dreamt of -
:24:19. > :24:22.she finally got a professional licence and beat Phyllis Kugler
:24:23. > :24:24.to become the world's first women's boxing champion.
:24:25. > :24:27.It's nice to know you're the best in the world isn't it?
:24:28. > :24:33.The title brought her to the epicentre
:24:34. > :24:36.of the boxing world - the place where Angelo Dundee
:24:37. > :24:45.Today the Fifth Street Gym's in a new building -
:24:46. > :24:50.I see pictures on the wall of Angelo Dundee, Muhammad Ali.
:24:51. > :24:52.You were here when these guys were here?
:24:53. > :24:55.Muhammad Ali was just Cassius Clay then.
:24:56. > :25:00.He was very confident of himself and very showy.
:25:01. > :25:03.But Barbara also met legends like Rocky Marciano's
:25:04. > :25:11.fighters like Sonny Liston and Ali's trainer Angelo Dundee.
:25:12. > :25:13.Did Angelo give you any words of advice?
:25:14. > :25:22.We talked quite a bit and he liked the way I boxed
:25:23. > :25:27.as if it's nothing to you, but these are the history makers.
:25:28. > :25:37.And it's still a place where world champion hopefuls train.
:25:38. > :25:40.Antonio Tarver is a former light heavyweight and
:25:41. > :25:42.cruiserweight titleholder - and an admirer of Barbara.
:25:43. > :25:56.I can only imagine the things she's seen, witnessing the greatness.
:25:57. > :26:01.I'm sure she'll probably have a few moves she could teach me right now!
:26:02. > :26:03.In 1960, Barbara retired - having won 30
:26:04. > :26:09.But she didn't say goodbye to boxing.
:26:10. > :26:12.She set up the Women's International Boxing Federation and gave women
:26:13. > :26:20.And in 2012 she came to London to watch women box for Olympic
:26:21. > :26:23.medals for the first time in history -
:26:24. > :26:27.among them, two times gold medallist Nicola Adams.
:26:28. > :26:31.It's because of women like her it's possible for me to box today.
:26:32. > :26:35.Women's boxing wasn't really accepted, so I can't imagine how
:26:36. > :26:37.hard it must have been for her to keep pushing,
:26:38. > :26:41.keep training and try to be taken seriously.
:26:42. > :26:45.So I have to say a big than you to Barbara for paving the way.
:26:46. > :26:49.I never thought it would develop to the point it has now.
:26:50. > :26:53.Getting into the Olympics, I was very pleased about that
:26:54. > :26:56.and now it's very much an accepted thing.
:26:57. > :27:03.became the only woman boxer to ever be inducted into the Florida
:27:04. > :27:15.She's like the coolest grandma.
:27:16. > :27:22.She pioneered the way for other women boxers.
:27:23. > :27:25.This month, she's coming back to visit Hull.
:27:26. > :27:28.And in the gym where Olympic Gold Medallist Luke Campbell
:27:29. > :27:30.trained, they're just as proud of Barbara.
:27:31. > :27:32.And she's passing her knowledge on to the next generation.
:27:33. > :27:45.You'll have to be very cunning with that.
:27:46. > :27:51.It's very easy to get feet your feet stepped on.
:27:52. > :27:53.I think it's really courageous, brave.
:27:54. > :27:57.She put herself out there, knowing there isn't really anyone
:27:58. > :28:05.girls and boys boxing, but you get the odd coaches
:28:06. > :28:09.But she's shown us they do and they do well.
:28:10. > :28:12.If I was a kid today, I'd be in my glory.
:28:13. > :28:15.Just pack my gym bag and walk off the same as anybody else,
:28:16. > :28:21.When Barbara put on her first pair of boxing
:28:22. > :28:24.gloves more than seven decades ago, she could only dream that girls
:28:25. > :28:34.But it could never have happened without Barbara leading the way.
:28:35. > :28:39.And Barbara will be a guest at the International women of the world
:28:40. > :28:46.festival in Hull this coming weekend. That's it from us this
:28:47. > :28:49.week. We are not here next week but joiners in two weeks' time for
:28:50. > :28:54.Inside Out.