Air pollution could be to blame for Parkinson’s disease, a study has suggested. Research has found those living in heavily polluted cities are at higher risk of developing the incurable and progressive condition. Those with a higher genetic Parkinson’s risk living in such areas were also up to three times more likely to be diagnosed with the brain disorder.
Exposure to particles of fumes emitted from car exhausts and burning wood are thought to trigger inflammation in the body that could spark the condition — which affects movement and blights some 150,000 Britons. US scientists tracked over 3,000 adults in two experiments.
The average levels of carbon monoxide (CO) that was directly emitted from vehicle engines close to participants’ homes were assessed. Also taken into account were other common pollutants from cars, including unburned hydrocarbons (HC), CO, nitrogen oxides (NOx) and particulate matter (PM).
Factors that could skew the results, such as food allergies and smoking status, were also accounted for.
In the first study, researchers at the University of California, Los Angeles, tracked over 1,300 adults who had lived in California for at least five years.
They found high levels of traffic-related air pollution put people at 28 percent higher risk of developing Parkinson’s. The second tracked more than 2,000 adults, more than half of whom lived in Copenhagen or provincial cities in Denmark.
Here, they discovered high traffic air pollution ‘nearly tripled the risk’ of the disease.
Combining the results of both studies, they determined that, on average, those who live in areas with high levels of traffic-related air pollution are at nine per cent greater risk.
Writing in the journal JAMA Network Open, the researchers said: ‘Notably, joint effects of both risk factors were much more pronounced, with Parkinson’s risk increasing up to 3-fold in genetically susceptible individuals exposed to high traffic-related air pollution levels.’
The World Health Organization has long demanded countries take tougher action to combat the scourge of pollution, which is thought to kill 7 million people every year globally. Every hour, two people are diagnosed with the condition in the UK and the disease costs the NHS more than £725million a year.
Early signs of the condition include a tremor, stiffness, slowness of movement and loss of smell. Balance problems such as issues with coordination and muscle cramps are other common signs. But it is a poorly understood condition which sees nerve cells in the brain that produce the vital hormone dopamine die off.
While there is no cure, treatments are available to manage symptoms and maintain quality of life for as long as possible. The condition places great strain on the body which in turn leaves a person vulnerable to deadly infections. -Daily Mail.uk
