They’ve been linked to high blood pressure, heart disease and heart attacks. Metals and particulate matter can do “almost immediate damage” to the lungs, Krishnan-Sarin said. They’ve been linked to high blood pressure, heart disease and heart attacks. Metals and particulate matter can do “almost immediate damage” to the lungs, Krishnan-Sarin said. “There is no established safe level of exposure to the chemicals found in any of these products,” Rezk-Hanna said.