High ozone pollution levels may counteract the respiratory healthcare improvements gained through vigorous physical activity in pediatric populations.
RT’s Three Key Takeaways:
- Ozone and Lung Development: New research suggests that ozone pollution can reduce the lung growth benefits children typically receive from vigorous physical activity.
- Importance of Exercise Intensity: The study found that vigorous physical activity was associated with improved lung function while moderate activity was not, highlighting the role of exercise intensity in pediatric respiratory healthcare.
- Pollutant Sensitivity: Ozone was identified as a more significant factor than particulate pollution in limiting exercise-related lung benefits due to its irritant effects on airways during increased breathing rates.
Vigorous physical activity promotes lung growth in children, but these benefits are reduced by ozone pollution, according to research presented at ATS 2026. The findings suggest that the healthcare benefits of exercising at levels recommended by the World Healthcare Organization (WHO) may be limited by environmental conditions.
The study is among the first to examine how intense exercise and long-term ozone exposure interact to influence lung development in children. Supporting lung development during these years is critical because lung function in childhood is strongly linked to respiratory healthcare later in life.
“The main message is that physical activity and environmental health are closely connected,” said James Scales, PhD, senior research fellow at Queen Mary University of London. “Encouraging children to be active is essential, but ensuring they grow up in clean, healthy environments is equally important.”
For the study, researchers analyzed data gathered on more than 3,400 children aged 6 to 9 over four years as part of the Children’s Health in London and Luton (CHILL) study. They compared data on the children’s activity levels, lung growth, and residential exposures to different types of air pollution.
A key finding was that, while vigorous physical activity showed a clear association with lung function, moderate activity did not. This suggests that the intensity of exercise matters for children’s respiratory healthcare. The team also found that ozone, a reactive gas that can irritate airways, was more important than particulate pollution in limiting the benefits of exercise.
“This fits with what we know about ozone’s biological effects during exercise, that it has an irritant effect on the airways when breathing rates increase and more ozone reaches the lungs,” said Scales.
The findings suggest that children in more polluted areas may not be able to gain the same developmental healthcare benefits from physical activity as their peers in cleaner environments, according to the study authors. These results could help support policies aimed at reducing ozone-forming emissions and suggest that environmental conditions should be considered when developing physical activity guidelines.
Researchers are planning follow-up studies to investigate whether there are specific thresholds for ozone exposure that trigger increased risk, as well as the short-term effects of ozone exposure on pediatric respiratory healthcare.
More information
Session/Poster Presentation: D26
The Unintended Consequences: Environmental Impacts of Air Pollution, Climate Change, and Modern Lung Disease
Vigorous Physical Activity, Ozone Exposure, and Lung Growth in Children
Date and Time: Wednesday, May 20 at 8:15 a.m.
Location: W206 (Level II, OCCC West Concourse)
