Thread by @JimBair62221006

“The connection between the sources of local air pollution and the emissions that drive climate change is very clear.’ (bit.ly/2H5xSe5)”

&

“The evidence is clear: air pollution has a devastating impact on children’s health” bit.ly/2DNev5q

*A thread*

Fossil fuel pollution poisons our children. 

By delaying climate action, world leaders are not only destabilizing the climate, but are also willfully ignoring a huge body of evidence on extreme health impacts of fossil fuel pollution.

Peer reviewed science details this clearly.

First, some general observations:

“The main environmental cause of childhood mortality and morbidity around the world is related to air pollution” bit.ly/3dzPew0

“by sharply reducing our dependence on fossil fuels we would achieve highly significant health and economic benefits for our children...These benefits would occur immediately and also play out over the life course” 

bit.ly/344QpjD

Such conclusions are based on research in countries around the world, including wealthy countries with supposedly clean air. 

E.g. in Canada -air pollution levels are "definitely too high for the public" near major roadways in Canadian cities.

bit.ly/355uKHp

Why are children at risk?

“Children are an especially vulnerable population because  they have increased exposure (children often spend more time outdoors), they breathe more air relative to their body weight…"

go.nature.com/2T1JGRe

“.. .and they are still growing and developing.  They also have less nasal deposition of particles, meaning that a higher proportion of particles can penetrate deeply into the lungs"

go.nature.com/2T1JGRe

What does this mean for long-term health?

“adverse effects on the developing lungs in childhood have been demonstrated to have health effects across the lifecourse”  go.nature.com/2H8Qs5g

e.g. it predicts “lung impairment in adults.” bit.ly/3k3xviQ

Notably, “Although air pollution is well known to be harmful to the lung and airways, it can also damage most other organ systems of the body”

bit.ly/3k3xviQ

This includes the brain, and accordingly: “air pollutants have been linked to an array of neurodevelopmental disorders in children”

bit.ly/2H8JqgE, bit.ly/3iYREVW

Autopsy studies have found “associations between exposure to urban air pollution, particulate deposition and inflammation already present within the brain”

bit.ly/2H8T9n9

For more on this, see:

https://twitter.com/mzjacobson/status/1315342991368679424?s=03

In addition, in a US study, “Brain scans of 12-year-old children show reduced thickness of the cortex and decreased gray matter volume in those who lived less than a quarter of a mile (400 meters) from a major highway at age 1"

bit.ly/3kbGAGw

“The take-home message is that the quality of air we breathe matters, especially to our children,” 

Having a thinner cortex and less gray matter may suggest there are fewer brain cells and fewer connections in the brain.

bit.ly/3kbGAGw

Specific child brain related impacts of air pollution include:

-“delayed psychomotor development and lower child intelligence.” bit.ly/3k3xviQ

-poorer performance on standardized tests bit.ly/3kbGAGw

Air pollution also has been linked with mental health in children, including suicidality.

bit.ly/3j7i7Rb

Also ”developmental delay…symptoms of anxiety, depression, and inattention, ADHD…In addition, respiratory illness associated with exposure to air pollution increases school absences, contributing to lower grades and test scores.” - this & much more in: bit.ly/2H8ULgH

Air pollution also of course impacts children's lungs, leading to:

 ”increased respiratory sleep problems & a variety of additional adverse sleep outcomes.” bit.ly/3nVm4Mp

and

”significantly lower lung function”, exacerbation of asthma, airway inflammation,  “prevalence of wheeze and allergic rhinitis”  bit.ly/3dxUO1A

Air pollution also impacts the body’s largest organ-

“Oxides have been associated with increased prevalence, as well as exacerbations of atopic dermatitis in children” bit.ly/3nTYu2N

As well as the eyes - “air pollution has considerable health risks for conjunctivitis. Females and the youth were more vulnerable to PM2.5, NO2, and O3.“

bit.ly/3o5XGrJ

And of particular concern- “Overall, the epidemiologic literature appears to support an association between benzene and childhood leukemia risk, with no indication of any threshold effect”

bit.ly/3lQ4SpR

Very disturbingly, impacts have been documented with prenatal exposures to air pollution:

-e.g. Prenatal exposure to PM10 “was found to play significant effects on airway hyperresponsiveness” & “is associated with early childhood asthma” 

bit.ly/31gobkb

-prenatal exposure of SO2 and NO2 have also been associated with  the risk of wheezing and asthma development in childhood 

bit.ly/3lUQrko

Such impacts are important in part because “impaired lung development contributes to infant mortality”

bit.ly/37fksr4

As such

“While evidence for the adverse effects of prenatal air pollution on lung development and health continue to mount, rigorous actions must be taken to reduce air pollution exposure and thus long-term respiratory morbidity and mortality.”

bit.ly/37fksr4

Another recent study found air pollution particles in the placentas of London women

bit.ly/3nV1Nqd

"Analysis of these particles strongly suggests that they originated from traffic-related sources & the metals found were associated with fossil fuel combustion & vehicle brake-wear."

bit.ly/3nV1Nqd

Not surprisingly then, wide ranging research has pointed towards impacts of air quality on fertility and birth outcomes.

As detailed in one recent review focusing on the US, “ increasingly common environmental exposures exacerbated by climate change are significantly associated with serious adverse pregnancy outcomes across the US”

bit.ly/2T89RWl

More specifically “Studies across diverse US populations were identified that reported an association of PM2.5, ozone, and heat exposure with the adverse obstetrical outcomes of preterm birth, low birth weight at term, and stillbirth.”

bit.ly/3o0lsoD

In turn, preterm birth and low birth weight are known risk factors for an array of neurodevelopmental disorders in children.

bit.ly/2HgPXFZ

In addition, 

“Air pollution has a negative impact on both male & female gametogenesis.” i.e. egg cell and sperm cell formation.

bit.ly/2GYcB6A

And significantly “These impacts not only influence the quantity of gametes but also on their quality on a genetic & epigenetic level.”

bit.ly/2GYcB6A

Finally, recent air quality impacts of climate change exacerbated fires are so unprecedentedly extreme that we don’t know how bad the long term effects are.

“The truth is, we don’t know the long-term effects. This is all quite new, the extent and severity of the pollution due to wildfires. … We need to invest in public health and really study these things to understand what it means for our children.”

bit.ly/3jiaEQb

But we do know that the pollutant load is “expected to increase because of changes in temperature, precipitation frequency, and air stagnation due to climate change”

bit.ly/2T2KkOw

And most importantly, we have solutions. None of this is inevitable!

Simply put:

“To reduce air pollution and limit climate change, we need a rapid transition to a cleaner and renewable energy system coupled with increases in energy efficiency”

bit.ly/3lO5zjk