INSTRUCTORS who train firefighters are at greater risk of suffering cardiovascular disease, fatigue and flu-like illnesses, a ground-breaking study published today has found.

Trainers often face up to 10 times as many live fires as firefighters, causing chronic inflammation which can lead to serious health issues — including possible heart attacks — researchers at the University of Roehampton in London warned.

The team, which also included academics from the University of Brighton, measured blood samples, blood pressure and psychological data from 136 fire and rescue service personnel — including breather apparatus instructors — over six months.

Some trainers, who were exposed to more than 20 fires every four weeks, showed “clear signs of systemic inflammation, which occurs when the immune system is constantly defending the body, making them more susceptible to infections and illnesses,” the paper stressed.

Symptoms included fatigue, sleep disturbances, headaches and flu-like infections. 

Lead researcher Dr Emily Watkins said: “This is the first research to identify that firefighters, particularly firefighter instructors, are reporting chronic and consistent symptoms of illness and inflammation.

“Based on this evidence, it’s imperative that fire services carefully evaluate and limit the number of exposures their staff face and review working practices to ensure instructors’ health is being prioritised.”

The study noted that some employers do limit exposure to fires, but it warned this practice is “not widespread, with variations in limits used.”

Training with between 10 and 15 live fires a month is a “reasonable maximum workload, with a greater number of exposures per month elevating the likelihood of systemic inflammation,” it recommended. 

The research follows landmark findings by the World Health Organisation’s International Agency for Research on Cancer last year, which classified occupational exposure to fires as carcinogenic to humans, with notable evidence of mesothelioma and bladder cancer in firefighters.

The Fire Brigades Union’s Riccardo la Torre told the Morning Star: “This research adds to a stack of scientific papers, globally and domestically, which prove the health risks firefighters face because of exposure to fire at work.

“Fire service employers and the government simply cannot continue to ignore the evidence. Britain is decades behind other parts of the world on responding to this life and death matter for firefighters, who deserve and demand urgent action.”