Exhaust gases from cars, industrial fumes, ozone that forms in the atmosphere. Add the heat of this period and you will have a list of the elements that, favoring environmental pollution, can over time pose a greater risk not only to the respiratory system, but also to blood vessels, with a potential increase in the development of atherosclerosis. This is hypothesized by a research conducted in Los Angeles, one of the most polluted metropolises. The study even shows that in children regular exposure to car exhaust products, in the areas with the greatest traffic, becomes a sort of “trailblazer” for the development of atherosclerotic lesions in adulthood.
Heart, environmental factors must be considered to calculate the risk
The research, on 70 children followed up to adulthood, appeared on Environmental Health, was coordinated by Shohreh Farzan, of the University of Southern California, which measured a particular parameter of arterial health over time, namely the changes in the thickness between the intima and media (two layers of the carotid wall). This marker of arterial well-being measures, in a completely painless way simply by placing a probe on the neck from the outside, the distance between the hyperechoic line (ultrasounds are used) inside the vessel wall, the one in direct contact with the blood, and the external one. . In this way it is possible to have a perception of the initial atherosclerotic lesions.
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The subjects included in the research were part of the Children’s Health Study, which began in 1993 in the Californian metropolis. In particular, children were recruited in kindergarten or first grade in 2002-2003. American scientists examined the average residential exposure to environmental pollutants such as ozone, nitrogen dioxide and particulate matter, analyzing data from air monitoring systems, to estimate the exposure to nitrogen oxides based on the proximity of a child’s home to the busiest roads. The change in thickness between the two layers of the carotid arteries was considered as an evaluation parameter, with measurements made around the age of 10 and then again on young people in their twenties. In those who were more exposed to traffic fumes and various pollution, a modification of the intima-media parameter of the carotid artery of about 1.7 microns per year was observed: by translating the data, this completely imperceptible “narrowing” would be correlated to an increase average blood pressure of about 10 millimeters of mercury, resulting in increased cardiovascular risk.
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Beware of runners
In short, air pollution can “bite” the arteries from a young age. Moreover, it could also be counterproductive even in adults who, to stay healthy, practice regular physical activity. This was reported by a research that appeared on European Heart Journal coordinated by the experts of the National University of Seoul, under the guidance of Sang Min Park. The data relating to subjects between 20 and 39 years old, present in the Nhis database (National Health Insurance Service) were examined. Study participants were divided into four groups based on their physical activity, converted into minutes of equivalent metabolic activity (aka MET) over the seven days. (METs / minutes / week): 0, 1-499, 500-999 and 1000 or more MET-mins / week. The guidelines of the European Society of Cardiology recommend that people try to do 500-999 MET-minutes / week and this can be achieved, for example, by running, cycling or hiking for 15-30 minutes five times a week, or walking briskly, or pedaling slowly for 30-60 minutes five times a week. Then these data were correlated with the levels of air pollution, with particular attention to the small particles PM10 and PM2.5. The study shows that in young adults the risk of stroke and heart attack increases if physical activity decreases, obviously in the presence of minimal air pollution. In contrast, in the group with high levels of exposure to air pollution, increasing the amount of physical activity to more than 1000 MET-minutes / week, more than the internationally recommended levels for physical activity, could adversely affect cardiovascular health. According to South Korean experts, only if air pollution is best controlled can the maximum benefits related to exercise be achieved in young adults.
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