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Air pollution can affect the upper respiratory tract and increase the risk of sleep apnea, but other factors are probably also involved.
Scientists have long known the effects that air pollution can have on our health, causing problems like respiratory and cardiovascular diseases.
In recent months, air pollution has hit the headlines, first after forest fires fizzed San Francisco and this week after Thai authorities began using water cannons in hopes of disperse a thick fog.
Recently, new research has shown that air pollution can have other consequences on the health of the heart and lungs, and it can also affect your sleep and mood.
In a recent study published in the Annals of the American Thoracic Society, researchers examined the link between obstructive sleep apnea and two common air pollutants – a type of fine particulate pollution called PM2.5 and nitrogen dioxide.
PM2.5 consists of particles whose diameter is equal to or less than 2.5 micrometers. These are produced by power plants, motor vehicles, burnt wood, agricultural fires and some industrial processes.
To put this into perspective, the dust, pollen and molds have a diameter of about 10 micrometers.
The authors of the study found that people living in areas with higher levels of both types of pollution were more likely to suffer from obstructive sleep apnea.
Sleep apnea is a potentially serious sleep disorder in which breathing stops and starts again during sleep. Obstructive sleep apnea is the most common type. It occurs when the throat closes and blocks the flow of air.
In the study, the link between air pollution and sleep apnea persisted even after researchers took into account other factors that could affect outcomes, such as body mbad index, hypertension, diabetes, smoking and family income.
The study included 1,974 people enrolled in the multi-ethnic study of atherosclerosis (MESA). They also participated in the study on sleep and air pollution.
The participants formed a heterogeneous group at the racial level. But with the average age being 68, the results may not be applicable to other age groups.
The researchers estimated exposure to air pollution in each person's home using measures taken in six US cities.
Since the study is not a randomized controlled trial, it can not show a causal relationship between air pollution and sleep apnea.
Dr. Ryan Donald, a sleep medicine specialist at the Wexner Medical Center at Ohio State University, said it was an "interesting" area of study, but more research was needed.
Many factors contribute to sleep apnea. These should be taken into account in future studies – such as sound and light pollution, different types of sleep environment, stressors and the shape of the airways.
Similarly, seasonal variations in the link between air pollution and sleep apnea found in some earlier studies may also be due to other factors.
"Air pollution can cause upper airway congestion," said Donald Donald, "but other elements, such as pollen, mold spores and dust that cause allergies, may increase the symptoms of sleep apnea. "
Many of them vary with the season.
Dr. Ray Casciari, a pulmonologist at St. Joseph's Hospital in Orange, California, agreed that "additional studies will be needed to study this," but added that "the results are not so surprising" .
If the pollution damages the mucous membranes of the nose and throat, it could contribute to sleep apnea, he said. Some studies have linked nasal congestion with sleep apnea.
Donald said that another potential mechanism proposed by the authors "makes sense".
"Different models, at least in animals, have shown that air pollutants can cause swelling and irritation of the upper respiratory tract," Donald said.
This swelling may worsen sleep apnea, depending on its location and severity.
Casciari proposed another possible mechanism: air pollution could directly affect the brain and impair breathing during sleep.
He referred to a recent study in China that linked exposure to air pollution with a decline in cognitive performance.
Even in this study, it is unclear how and if air pollution could directly affect the brain.
Air pollution can even affect your mood.
A study released last month found that in some parts of China, people's happiness – measured by their social media posts – was decreasing as air pollution increased.
"Pollution also has an emotional cost," said senior researcher Siqi Zheng, MIT faculty director, China Future City Lab, in a statement. "People are unhappy and that means they can make irrational decisions."
Researchers write that the effect of air pollution on mood can be partly due to direct physical effects, as well as stress related to the desire to avoid air pollution.
Researchers have noticed that this link is stronger in the cleanest and dirtiest cities. They suggest that the reason is that people who do not like air pollution move to cleaner cities, so their mood is more affected when the air is dirty.
On the other hand, the inhabitants of the dirtiest cities know the long-term effects of air pollution on health. So, when the air is dirtier, they can worry about its effects on their health.
The World Health Organization ranks air pollution among the top 10 health threats in 2019. About 7 million people worldwide die prematurely each year as a result of environmental pollution. ;air.
Tiny particles from factories and fires are not the only type of air pollution that can affect your health.
Casciari said that smoking and vaping sent chemicals and particles directly to your lungs. This can be worse in some areas.
"If you smoke and you are in a very polluted area, you are more likely to get sick and lung cancer than if you were in one heavily polluted area," Casciari said.
There are also a variety of health problems related to air pollution and many years of research, including heart disease, stroke, lung cancer, emergency room visits, hospitalizations and premature deaths.
In recent decades, the United States has made progress in reducing the number of deaths from pollution.
A study released last October found that the number of deaths related to air pollution in the United States rose from about 135,000 in 1990 to 71,000 in 2010.
"We have done really well in the United States with air pollution," Casciari said. "The number of deaths due to air pollution has decreased significantly."
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