Pollution reduces intelligence, according to a new study

Exposure to particulate matter causes impaired cognitive performance

Toxic air is estimated to cause premature deaths of 7 million people a year worldwide, but now attempts are being made to measure the effects on human brain activity.

In addition to having a deadly impact on people’s health, air pollution is also believed to be responsible for a profound reduction in intelligence, according to a new study.

Numerous studies increasingly support the hypothesis of a relationship between air pollution and a marked decrease in intelligence.

Chronic exposure to airborne particulate matter appears to cause significant declines in test scores for both language and arithmetic, with average results quantifying the impact of poisonous air with the loss of one year of education.

The study conducted in China by researchers at the Yale School of Public Health (United States)

A study conducted in China by researchers from the Yale School of Public Health (U.S.) , published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, took place over four years and analyzed lexical and arithmetic tests taken by 20,000 people of all ages in 162 different Chinese counties and then compared the results with pollutant levels in different locations.

The research was carried out in China, but is relevant worldwide, as more than 91 percent of the planet’s population lives in areas with hazardous air and it is now the fourth leading cause of death worldwide, according to the World Health Organization.

The results

The results indicate that prolonged exposure to poor air appears to cause degradation of cognition that worsens with age, particularly so in less educated, older (over 64) male subjects.

Pollution also increases the risk of degenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s and other forms of dementia, the study suggests.

“Polluted air may hinder cognitive abilities as people age, especially for less educated men,” the authors state. “The damage on the aging brain caused by air pollution imposes substantial health and economic costs, considering that cognitive functioning is critical for the elderly for both daily errands and high-level decision making.”

The negative effects of pollution seemed to have a more pronounced effect on people’s verbal abilities, which the author speculates is due to pollution having a stronger effect on the parts of the brain needed for verbal tests.

It would appear that pollutants directly affect brain chemistry. Toxins would, in fact, be transported into the neural apparatus through small passages. And the consequence would be a real psychological impact.

In addition, exposure to pollution over a long period increases the mortality rate among people with mental problems and could be the cause of the onset of mental illness in children.

Reducing air pollution should become a top priority of the government and citizens.