Exposure to NO2 and particulate matter from birth to age 17 is associated with bronchitic symptoms in adulthood, according to new research.
RT’s Three Key Takeaways:
- Long-term Impact of Childhood Exposure: Exposure to nitrogen dioxide (NO2) and particulate matter (PM10) air pollution from birth to age 17 is associated with a higher likelihood of developing bronchitic symptoms, such as chronic cough and phlegm, in adulthood.
- Increased Susceptibility in Asthmatic Children: The study found stronger associations between air pollution exposure and bronchitic symptoms in individuals who had childhood asthma, indicating a higher susceptibility to the harmful effects of air pollution.
- Need for Regulatory Efforts: The findings underscore the importance of regulatory efforts to reduce air pollution concentrations, as controlling individual exposure is challenging, and protecting public respiratory health requires broader environmental measures.
Exposure to NO2 and particulate matter air pollution in children from birth to 17 years was associated with bronchitic symptoms (ie, bronchitis, chronic cough, or phlegm) in adulthood, according to new research published online in the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine.
Researchers looked at data of 1,308 participants from birth through adulthood. The data, taken from the Southern California Children’s Health Study, showed that higher concentrations of nitrogen dioxide (NO2) and particulate matter (PM10) during childhood were associated with higher likelihood of reporting bronchitic symptoms as an adult.
“For both NO2 and PM10, associations were stronger among participants who reported having childhood asthma,” says lead author Erika Garcia, PhD, MPH, assistant professor, Division of Environmental Health, Keck School of Medicine of USC, in a release. “Participants with childhood asthma may represent a subpopulation with increased susceptibility to the effects of air pollution exposure in childhood.”
Children’s Vulnerability
Children are particularly susceptible to the harmful effects of air pollution; not only are their lungs and immune system still developing, but they also breathe more air per kilogram of body weight compared to adults, according to researchers.
“Controlling exposure to air pollution at an individual level is challenging, which stresses the importance of continuing regulatory efforts to reduce air pollution concentrations—including to nitrogen dioxide and particulate matter which were implicated in this study—to protect the public’s respiratory health,” says Garcia in a release.
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