Study Finds Wide Exposure to Environmental Toxics in Cohort of Pregnant Women

UCSF: Low income and Latina pregnant women who seek care at Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital and Trauma Center (ZSFG) have widespread exposure to environmental pollutants, many of which show up in higher levels in newborns than the mothers, according to a new study from UC Berkeley, UC San Francisco and Biomonitoring CA. The study is the most extensive look yet at how the chemicals pregnant women are exposed to also appear in their babies’ cord blood. It measured 59 chemicals, a broader array than has been examined before in a single study, providing a first indication of how several different classes of environmental chemicals found in a pregnant woman’s blood are also present in the newborn.

Exposure to air pollution in the first year of life increases risk for allergies

British Columbia: New research from the Canadian Healthy Infant Longitudinal Development (CHILD) study shows that exposure to outdoor air pollution during the first year of life increases the risk of developing allergies to food, mould, pets and pests. The study, published in the journal Environmental Health Perspectives, showed that the sensitivity to allergens was associated with exposure to traffic-related air pollution during infancy. “With the increasing rates of allergies amongst children in Canada and elsewhere, we were interested in determining if air pollution from traffic might be partially responsible,” said Michael Brauer, the study’s senior author and a professor in the School of Population and Public Health at the University of British Columbia. “This is the first study to find a link between air pollution and measured allergic sensitization during the first year.”

Exercise can outweigh harmful effects of air pollution

Copenhagen: New research from the University of Copenhagen has found that the beneficial effects of exercise are more important for our health than the negative effects of air pollution, in relation to the risk of premature mortality. In other words, benefits of exercise outweigh the harmful effects of air pollution. The study shows that despite the adverse effects of air pollution on health, air pollution should be not perceived as a barrier to exercise in urban areas. “Even for those living in the most polluted areas, it is healthier to go for a run, a walk or to cycle to work than it is to stay inactive,” says Pr Zorana Jovanovic Andersen.

Even short term to air pollution can raise stroke risk

Edinburgh: Recent exposure to air pollution is linked to an increased risk of stroke, according to new research. Researchers found a strong association between the levels of pollutants in the air and the number of people suffering a major stroke within days of exposure. Their findings add to previous reports that long term exposure to air pollution is linked to lung, heart and circulatory diseases.

Study Suggests Prenatal Air Pollution Exposure may be Bad for Kids’ Brains

JAMA: A small imaging study suggests prenatal exposure to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), the toxic air pollution caused in part by vehicle emissions, coal burning and smoking, may be bad for children’s brains and may contribute to slower processing speeds and behavioral problems, including attention-deficit-hyperactivity-disorder (ADHD) symptoms, according to an article published online by JAMA Psychiatry.

Air pollution linked to stroke and anxiety

Scimex: Two studies have found that air pollution is linked to a higher risk of stroke and associated with anxiety. In one study, Scottish scientists reviewed research investigating links between short term air pollution exposure and stroke-related hospital admissions and deaths in 28 countries - including Australia and New Zealand. While n the second study, US researchers looked at air pollution and anxiety in over 70,000 women aged between 57 and 85 years.

Turning smartphones into personal, real-time pollution monitors

American Chemical Society: As urban residents know, air quality is a big deal. When local pollution levels go up, the associated health risks also increase, especially for children and seniors. But air pollution varies widely over the course of a day and by location, even within the same city. Now scientists, reporting in the ACS journal Environmental Science & Technology, have used smartphone and sensing technology to better pinpoint where and when pollution is at its worst.