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According to the Institute of Public Health, dementia is a term that describes a group of symptoms: such as gradual loss of memory, a decline in the ability to think and reason, and problems with communication.
Affecting cognitive functions it is often accompanied, and usually preceded, by deterioration of emotional control, social behavior and motivation.
It has long been known that pollution can damage the heart and lungs, but new research reveals how it also affects brain health.
AgroWeb.org introduces you below to new research about the impact of highly polluted air on brain health.
What does the study show about air pollution and dementia?
A long-term study that AgroWeb.org relied on links exposure to high levels of air pollution with an increased risk of dementia.
“We found that an increase of 1 microgram per cubic meter of exposure to polluted air was associated with an increased risk of developing this disease.”said lead study author Rachel Shaffer, who conducted the study in the Department of Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences at the University of Washington.
A slight increase in pollution levels over a decade in certain neighborhoods was associated with a greater risk of dementia for residents.
“We know that dementia develops over a long period of time“, she said.
“It takes years, even decades, for these pathologies to develop in the brain. It was therefore necessary to assess the long-term exposure of residents over an extended period of time.”
Air pollution is recognized as one of the main risk factors for dementia.
The study suggests that air pollution can damage the brain and that reducing people’s exposure to polluted air can help reduce dementia rates.
“At first it was thought that exposure to polluted air only caused breathing problems, then we realized that it also has adverse cardiovascular effects, and now we have evidence of its effects on the brain”say the researchers.
They note that one way individuals can reduce this risk is by wearing a mask.
The researchers also state that it is not fair that only humans carry this burden on their shoulders.
Based on this data, policies at the local and national level can be set in motion to control sources of particulate air pollution./AgroWeb
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