Dementia could be caused by the air we breath

According to the Federal Statistical Office (as of mid-2021), 57% of the world's population now lives in cities. By 2030, this figure is expected to rise to 60%. There are already 24 megacities with more than 10 million inhabitants. And very few of them pay attention to air quality.

Dirty cityscape

We are familiar with pictures of smog-covered cities in Mexico, India or China, where wearing a mask is not just a Corona measure. However, the rest of the world is not immune to this as well. The main factor causing this is fine particulate matter (PM2.5). In 2016, a study by Harvard University published an analysis of 10 million US Americans regarding the connection between air pollutants and neurodegenerative diseases. The fine dust particle PM2.5 plays an active role in this.

It is mainly produced by the combustion of oil, gas, coal and wood. More and more studies worldwide are establishing frightening links between the decline of cognitive abilities and air pollution.

Blood-brain barrier ineffective

Until now, it was assumed that the blood-brain barrier protected the brain from pollutants. However, as spektrum.de reports, evidence shows that PM2.5 can indeed enter the brain. And that is via our olfactory organ, or through the ability of PM2.5 to alter the barrier so that it becomes more permeable to pollutants.

The same source quotes toxicologist Masashi Kitazawa of the University of California at Irvine as saying that in the most common form of Alzheimer's disease, which starts late, lifestyle and harmful environmental influences could account for 40 to 65 per cent of the risk of the disease. Air pollution is one of the main factors, he said.

This article was translated from Gentside DE.

Sources used:

-destatis.de: Stadtbevölkerung steigt bis 2030 weltweit um 700 Millionen Menschen

-Environmental Health Perspectives: Long-term PM2.5 Exposure and Neurological Hospital Admissions in the Northeastern United States

-air-Q: Luftverschmutzung in Großstädten: Diese deutschen Städte sind am stärksten betroffen

-spektrum.de: Dicke Luft