Study: Air pollution shows ill effects in children

New research has shown the ill effects of pollution exposure among children.The study was published in the journal, ‘New Directions for Child and Adolescent Research’. Blood samples show that children have elevated markers of inflammation, such as interleukin 6 if they were exposed to higher air pollution. Further, higher air pollution was linked to lower cardiac autonomic regulation in children, which impacts how fast the heart beats and how hard it pumps, according to the study. These findings are important because exposure to pollutants released during wildfires has been related to numerous negative health outcomes in children, who have smaller bodies and organ systems than adults, including asthma and decreased lung function, as well as neurodevelopmental outcomes like attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, autism, and deficits in school performance and memory, researchers said.