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Beautiful Pollution: The Connection Between Alzheimer’s and Air Pollution

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Beautiful Pollution: The Connection Between Alzheimer’s and Air Pollution

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Have you ever spent the day in a city with such bad air pollution that when you blew your nose the mucus had a black tinge? Have you ever coughed as you breathed in diesel fumes from a passing bus and thought to yourself, "Well, that's a year gone from my life"? Could it actually be true - that air pollution leads to an early death? The answer, in fact, is an unqualified yes.

Air pollution causes heart disease, lung disease, and early death

It has been known for some time that air pollution causes lung cancer, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, emphysema, asthma, heart disease, and stroke. One recent study in China estimated that for those ages 75 and older, there are 1,166 early deaths for every 100,000 people - that's more than 1%. But if it doesn't kill you outright, can air pollution impair your memory, and cause dementia in general and Alzheimer's disease (one cause of dementia) in particular?

Studies from several countries link air pollution to cognitive impairment

Three studies from three different parts of the world suggest that air pollution might cause cognitive impairment, dementia, and Alzheimer's disease. In the first study, researchers from China and the US teamed up to analyze data from China. They found that long-term exposure to air pollution is related to poor performance on both verbal and math tests. Moreover, the poor performance on the verbal tests was more pronounced for older individuals, especially for men and those less educated.

In the second study, researchers in England studied 130,978 adults ages 50 to 79 from 75 medical practices in greater London. They found that from 2005 to 2013, 2,181 older adults from this sample were diagnosed with dementia: 39% with Alzheimer's disease, 29% with vascular dementia, and 32% without a specific dementia diagnosis. Adults living with the highest annual concentration of air pollution had the highest risk of dementia - 1.4 times the risk of those with the lowest annual concentration. They also found that these associations were more consistent for those given an Alzheimer's disease diagnosis.

In the third study, published earlier this year, researchers from the United States, including the University of Southern California and Harvard Medical School, studied data from 998 women ages 73 to 87 who had both cognitive tests and MRI scans. They found that those women who were exposed to higher concentrations of air pollution in the preceding three years showed two differences compared to those who were exposed to less air pollution. Cognitively, those exposed to more air pollution showed greater declines in learning a list of words. Anatomically, they showed more atrophy (shrinkage) in those areas of the brain that typically shrink due to Alzheimer's disease.

Importantly, in all three studies, the researchers controlled for every possible other factor that they thought might make a difference. For example, in this third study they controlled for: sociodemographic factors (age, geographic region, race/ethnicity, education, income); lifestyle (smoking, alcohol, physical activity); employment status; clinical characteristics (diabetes, high cholesterol, hypertension, cardiovascular diseases, hormone therapy); and MRI-measured cerebrovascular disease.

Air pollution is associated with a greater risk of Alzheimer's disease, but it may not be the cause of the cognitive decline

The first thing to say is that I believe this correlation is real. The fact that three different groups analyzed data from three different continents and came to similar conclusions cannot be due to chance alone. Thus, I firmly believe that the following statement is true: Higher levels of air pollution are associated with a greater risk of cognitive decline, dementia in general, and Alzheimer's disease in particular.

However, that is not the same thing as saying that high levels of air pollution cause cognitive decline, dementia, and Alzheimer's disease. Air pollution could cause Alzheimer's disease, and many researchers provided possible mechanisms as to how that might happen.

However, it is also possible that air pollution could be linked to some as-of-yet unidentified factor that explains the association. For example, it has already been fairly well established that some viral illnesses are associated with Alzheimer's disease. It has also been well established that viral illnesses are more likely to be transmitted when people are gathered together indoors versus outdoors. So, it may simply be that where there is greater pollution, people are more likely to gather together inside, shut the windows, and trade viruses with each other. The new virus they acquire may be the real cause of the increased risk of Alzheimer's disease. Now, that's just speculation - just an example of how a real association is not the same thing as evidence of causation.

What can you do if you want to reduce air pollution to lower your risk of Alzheimer's disease?

Directly or indirectly, we are all responsible for the air pollution in our cities, our country, and our planet. We should each work to do what we can to reduce our carbon footprint. We can work to reuse and recycle materials so that factories don't need to produce as much. We can buy local foods that don't need to be trucked across the country and shipped around the world. We can walk and bike instead of driving our cars (and, once we're done with COVID, carpool and take public transportation). Lastly, we can elect public officials who will advocate for local, national, and international policy to reduce pollution. And those are just some of the things that we can do to clear the air.

About the Author

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Does air pollution cause Alzheimer's disease? - Harvard Health

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It has been known for some time that air pollution causes heart and lung diseases. Now, results from three different studies on populations in different parts of the world show an association between higher levels of air pollution and greater risk of cognitive impairment, dementia, and Alzheimer's disease.

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national aeronautics and space administration

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Interactives - Climate Change: Vital Signs of the Planet

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Vital Signs of the Planet: Global Climate Change and Global Warming. Current news and data streams about global warming and climate change from NASA.

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water is able to dissolve more substances than any other liquid on earth. It’s the reason we have Kool-Aid and brilliant blue waterfalls. This website would tell you everything you need to know 

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water is able to dissolve more substances than any other liquid on earth. It’s the reason we have Kool-Aid and brilliant blue waterfalls. This website would tell you everything you need to know 

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This picture is the Toxic green algae in Copco Reservoir, northern California

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Water pollution is caused by animals , humans dropping trash in nature and in water also in sewage ,and waste water and humans dropping tons of oil in the sea. It is important that we have clean water as clean water is used for many things like drinking , swimming ,cooking , cleaning.

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Water pollution is caused by animals , humans dropping trash in nature and in water also in sewage ,and waste water and humans dropping tons of oil in the sea. It is important that we have clean water as clean water is used for many things like drinking , swimming ,cooking , cleaning.

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Air pollution starts to enter Earth atmosphere in a lot of different ways. A lot of air pollution is created by humans working in factories and. Building cars , planes, and aerosol cans. cigarettes smoke is considered to be air pollution.

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Air pollution starts to enter Earth atmosphere in a lot of different ways. A lot of air pollution is created by humans working in factories and. Building cars , planes, and aerosol cans. cigarettes smoke is considered to be air pollution.

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Air pollution consists of chemicals or particles in the air that can harm the health of humans, animals and plants. It can even damage buildings.

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The clean air act is a federal law passed in 1970. Which is it was to prevent air pollution and to protect the ozone layer.

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The clean air act is a federal law passed in 1970. Which is it was to prevent air pollution and to protect the ozone layer.

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Clean Air Act (CAA), U.S. federal law, passed in 1970 and later amended, to prevent air pollution and thereby protect the ozone layer and promote public health. The Clean Air Act gave the federal Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) the power it needed to take effective action to fight environmenta…

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to a void air pollution you can use less energy, drive your car less, take car of plants, and trees. Have a limit on using backyards fire,don't burn your garbage, turn off your engine like big trucks keep the engine on but that's  actually its bad for the ozone layer which can expand it.  Which can damage living things.

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to a void air pollution you can use less energy, drive your car less, take car of plants, and trees. Have a limit on using backyards fire,don't burn your garbage, turn off your engine like big trucks keep the engine on but that's  actually its bad for the ozone layer which can expand it.  Which can damage living things.

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There are many small, but critical sources of air pollution in our homes and neighborhoods. Such sources - vehicles, construction equipment, lawn mowers, dry cleaners, backyard fires, and auto-body shops - are located where we live and work. Total emissions from these smaller but widespread sources are significantly greater than all the industrial sources in the state combined.

To prevent pollution from these sources, the MPCA provides education, guidance, and incentives for reducing air pollution. We have programs for businesses, cities, nonprofits, and communities that address a range of environmental problems, including air quality.

Drive your car less. Vehicle exhaust is a major source of air pollution in Minnesota. Carpool. Bike. Bus. Telecommute. Electric vehicles. How could you burn less fuel?

Keep your car in good repair. Fix exhaust and oxygen sensor problems ASAP. Check your tire pressure monthly; under-inflated tires have been shown to lower gas mileage, particularly at lower speed.

Turn off your engine. An idling engine creates a hot spot of pollution. Buses and big trucks produce particularly unhealthy exhaust. Parents and teachers can help their schools and daycares develop and implement no-idling policies.

Don't burn your garbage. Burning your household garbage is dangerous to your health and our environment, and generally against the law in Minnesota. If you're still using a burn barrel, wood stove, or fire-pit for your trash, contact your county about arranging for trash hauling services.

Limit backyards fire in the city. Smoke from backyard fires can cause unhealthy conditions for hundreds of people, especially during stagnant weather conditions. Since cities have elevated levels of pollution compared to rural areas, urban fires are more of a nuisance to people with asthma and other lung conditions. If you do have a campfire:

Keep fires brief and small 3 feet across or less.

Burn only dry fire wood. In the Twin Cities it is illegal to burn any waste in a fire, even yard waste.

Never start campfires during an air quality alert. Sign up for texts or emails about elevated air pollution levels.

Plant and care for trees. Trees filter pollutants and absorb carbon dioxide. Trees also release oxygen into the atmosphere and help cool our homes.

Switch to electric or hand-powered lawn equipment. Gas-powered engines like those on lawnmowers and leaf or snow blowers often lack pollution control devices. An hour running a lawn mower can produce nearly the same amount of pollution as a 100-mile car trip! Use hand-powered or electric lawn care equipment instead.

Use less energy. Choose efficient appliances and heating systems. Get an energy audit and follow the advice. Turn off electrical stuff you are not using. It all adds up.

Become a champion for clean air. Direct local businesses, city offices, and school districts toward programs that can help them reduce air pollution and become more sustainable.

GreenStep Cities: City and county officials governments can help by passing local ordinances, creating incentives for beneficial behaviors, and promoting and educating residents on best practices.

Small business assistance: The Small Business Environmental Assistance Program helps Minnesota businesses comply with environmental rules, reduce wastes and emissions, and reduce regulatory obligations.

Minnesota GreenCorps: An AmeriCorps program coordinated by the MPCA places members with organizations around the state to address environmental issues, including air quality. Nonprofit, government and school districts are eligible to host members to work on qualified projects.

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Learn what steps you can take to reduce the pollution from small neighborhood sources.