The mediating role of lung function on air pollution-induced cardiopulmonary mortality

Ambient air pollution is a leading environmental risk factor and its broad spectrum of adverse health effects includes a decrease in lung function. Socioeconomic status (SES) is known to be associated with both air pollution exposure and respiratory function. This study assesses the role of SES either as confounder or effect modifier of the association between ambient air pollution and lung function. Cross-sectional data from three European multicenter adult cohorts were pooled to assess factors associated with lung function, including annual means of home outdoor NO2. Pre-bronchodilator lung function was measured according to the ATS-criteria. Multiple mixed linear models with random intercepts for study areas were used. Three different factors (education, occupation and neighborhood unemployment rate) were considered to represent SES. NO2 exposure was negatively associated with lung function. Occupation and neighborhood unemployment rates were not associated with lung function. However, the inclusion of the SES-variable education improved the models and the air pollution-lung function associations got slightly stronger. NO2 associations with lung function were not substantially modified by SES-variables. In this multicenter European study we could show that SES plays a role as a confounder in the association of ambient NO2 exposure with lung function.

Download Full-text

The role of air pollution and lung function in cognitive impairment

European Respiratory Journal ◽

10.1183/13993003.01963-2017 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 51 (2) ◽

pp. 1701963 ◽

Cited By ~ 11

Author(s):

Anke Hüls ◽

Andrea Vierkötter ◽

Dorothea Sugiri ◽

Michael J. Abramson ◽

Ulrich Ranft ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Air Pollution ◽

Cognitive Impairment ◽

Lung Function ◽

Neuropsychological Test ◽

Forced Expiratory Volume ◽

Z Scores ◽

Causal Mediation Analysis ◽

Never Smokers

Air pollution has been associated with impaired lung and cognitive function, especially impairment in visuo-construction performance (VCP). In this article, we evaluate whether the effect of air pollution on VCP is mediated by lung function.We used data from the SALIA cohort (baseline 1985–1994 and follow-up 2007–2010) including 587 women aged 55 years at baseline. Particulate matter (PM) and nitrogen dioxide (NO2) exposures at baseline were estimated via land-use regression models. Lung function was characterised by averages between baseline and follow-up. We used age- and height-controlled Global Lung Initiative (GLI) z-scores of forced expiratory volume in 1 s (FEV1), forced vital capacity (FVC) and FEV1/FVC. VCP was assessed at follow-up with the CERAD-Plus neuropsychological test battery and causal mediation analysis was conducted.An increase of one interquartile range in FEV1 and FVC was positively associated with VCP (β=0.18 (95% CI 0.02–0.34) and β=0.23 (95% CI 0.07–0.39), respectively). The proportion of the association between NO2 on VCP mediated by FEV1 was 6.2% and this was higher in never smokers (7.2%) and non-carriers of the APOE-ε4 allele (11.2%). However, none of the mediations were statistically significant.In conclusion, air pollution associated VCP was partially mediated by lung function. Further studies on the mechanisms underlying this pathway are required to develop new strategies to prevent air pollution induced cognitive impairment.

Download Full-text

Air Pollution and Adolescent Development: Evidence from a 3-Year Longitudinal Study in China

Children ◽

10.3390/children8110987 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 8 (11) ◽

pp. 987

Author(s):

Na Ni ◽

Xinli Chi ◽

Wei Liu ◽

Xiumin Cui

Keyword(s):

Air Pollution ◽

Emotional Disorders ◽

Youth Development ◽

Adolescent Development ◽

Physical Environment ◽

Southern China ◽

Positive Development ◽

Mediating Role ◽

The Impact

This study aimed to investigate the impact of air pollution on the development of adolescents and the mediating role of students’ emotional disorders. Participants came from a longitudinal sample group of adolescents (n = 1301) in Southern China from the years 2016 to 2018. They were assessed for the Positive Youth Development and emotional disorders, and air pollution was measured by the Air Quality Index. The results show that students’ higher degree of exposure to air pollution was negatively associated with their positive development. Three out of four emotional disorders (i.e., anxiety, neuroticism, and withdrawal) mediate this association. The results suggest that the physical environment can have a paramount influence on the emotional status and overall development of adolescents, calling for intervention programs by policymakers.

Download Full-text