Air Pollution May Even Harm Blood Vessels of Healthy Young
Even young, healthy adults can suffer blood vessel damage
from air pollution, a new study finds.
Periodic exposure to fine particulate matter -- tiny
pollutants from cars, factories, power plants and fires -- isn't a health risk
only for the ill and the elderly, the researchers concluded.
The three-year study in Provo, Utah, tied this form of air
pollution to abnormal changes in the blood of young adults, age 23 on average.
Over time, these abnormalities could lead to heart disease, the researchers said.
The findings suggest that living in a polluted environment
could promote development of high blood pressure, heart
disease and stroke more pervasively and at an
earlier stage than previously thought, said study researcher Timothy O'Toole.
He's with the Diabetes and Obesity Center at the University of
Louisville in Kentucky.
"Although we have known for some time that air
pollution can trigger heart attacks or strokes in susceptible, high-risk
individuals, the finding that it could also affect even seemingly healthy
individuals suggests that increased levels of air pollution is of concern to
all of us, and not just the sick or the elderly," O'Toole said.
"Blood vessel injury is the cornerstone of
cardiovascular damage that leads to heart attacks and strokes," said Dr.
Satjit Bhusri, a cardiologist at Lenox Hill Hospital.
This study helps explain how toxins in the air might cause
such damage, Bhusri said. It suggests air pollution increases cell damage and
artery injury. It also suggests that there are biochemical signs that prevent
new blood vessel growth and promote cell death, Bhusri noted.
"Taken together, we now have a clear link to air
pollution and inherent blood vessel damage that can lead to an increased risk
of cardiovascular
disease," he said.
The
report was published online Oct. 25 in the journal Circulation Research.
Source: www.medicinenet.com
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