Air pollution inhaled during childhood is one of the factors in adult lung health, according to a new study.
The origin of the study room dates back to 1992 when researchers began investigating the effects of air pollution on groups of children in California. Some of these kids are now in their 40s.
Dr. Erika Garcia and colleagues from the University of Southern California decided to see how they were doing. More than 1,300 people responded, filling out detailed questionnaires about their income, lifestyle (including smoking), homes and health. It was appropriate against their childhood health and the local air pollution when they were growing up.
The first finding was that people with higher childhood exposure to particulate pollution and nitrogen dioxide had a greater likelihood of bronchitic symptoms as an adult. This relationship was strongest for those who developed asthma and lung problems as children, meaning that these people had a vulnerability that continued into adulthood.
The second finding was unexpected: a link exists between childhood air pollution and adult bronchitic symptoms for people who did not have lung problems as children.
This suggests that the damage of air pollution in childhood may only manifest itself in adult life.
Garcia said: “It was surprising. We hypothesized that the effects of air pollution on asthma or bronchitic symptoms would be an important pathway through which exposure to air pollution in childhood affects adult respiratory health.”
It was important for the study to distinguish between the lasting effects of exposure during childhood and the impact of air inhaled as adults. So the researchers looked at each person’s recent exposure to air pollution and factored that into the analysis.
Garcia said, “We wanted to see if exposure in childhood was still associated with adult bronchitic symptoms, even after controlling for current exposure, and it was.”
In the UK, separate research suggests that the health legacy of the 1952 London smog continues. Researchers studied adults who experienced the 1952 smog while in utero or less than one year old. As children, they had a 20% greater chance of asthma and, although on the verge of statistical significance, a 10% greater chance of adult asthma compared to people who did not experience the smog.
Air pollution has changed a lot since the 1950sand even since the 1990s, but study in Stockholm and London continues to show that 21st-century air pollution reduces children’s lung growth. This means smaller lungs than adults and a possible lifelong health legacy.
Commenting on the implications of her new research, Garcia said, “It highlights the importance of lowering air pollution exposure for everyone, including children who are in a period of increased vulnerability to air pollution effects.”
