BioQuakes

AP Biology class blog for discussing current research in Biology

Is Air Pollution Exposure In Childhood Linked To Schizophrenia?

Research has shown that pollution affects physical health, but does air pollution also affect our psychological health? A study, which combines genetic data from iPSYCH with air pollution data from the Department of Environmental Science, reveals that children who are exposed to a high level of air pollution while growing up have an increased risk of developing schizophrenia.

“The study shows that the higher the level of air pollution, the higher the risk of schizophrenia. For each 10 ?g/m3 (concentration of air pollution per cubic metre) increase in the daily average, the risk of schizophrenia increases by approximately twenty per cent. Children who are exposed to an average daily level above 25 ?g/m3 have an approx. sixty per cent greater risk of developing schizophrenia compared to those who are exposed to less than 10 ?g/m3,” explains Senior Researcher Henriette Thisted Horsdal, who is behind the study.

To put this research into perspective, the lifetime risk of developing schizophrenia is approximately two percent, which is equal to two out of a hundred people developing schizophrenia in one’s life. For people exposed to the lowest level of air pollution, the lifetime risk is just under two percent. The lifetime risk for people exposed to the highest level of air pollution is approximately three percent.

“The risk of developing schizophrenia is also higher if you have a higher genetic liability for the disease. Our data shows that these associations are independent of each other. The association between air pollution and schizophrenia cannot be explained by a higher genetic liability in people who grow up in areas with high levels of air pollution,” says Henriette Thisted Horsdal about the study, which is the first of its kind to combine air pollution and genetics in relation to the risk of developing schizophrenia.

The study included 23,355 people in total. Out of those people, 3,531 developed schizophrenia. Through the results of this research one can see that there is an increased risk of schizophrenia when the level of air pollution during childhood increases; however, the researches cannot comment on the cause. Instead, the researched emphasize that further studies are needed before they can identify the cause of this association.

Schizophrenia is thought to mainly be a result of genetics, brain chemistry, substance use, and exposure to viruses or malnutrition before birth. So, I think it is very interesting that exposure to air pollution during childhood may be a cause as well. Additionally, I hope that these findings and further studies become very useful to schizophrenia research and prevention, as schizophrenia is a very serious mental illness and there is no cure.

 

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10 Comments

  1. glovcose

    I found your post very interesting. It is shocking for me to see that air pollution could be related to children developing schizophrenia. In this article I found, https://www.theguardian.com/society/2019/aug/20/growing-up-in-air-polluted-areas-linked-to-mental-health-issues it says that air pollution can not only increase the risk of developing schizophrenia but also other mental health disorders. For example, some other mental health disorders that can be caused by air pollution are depression or bipolar disorder. I thought mental health disorders were, like you said, a result of genetics, brain chemistry, substance use, and an exposure to viruses or malnutrition before birth; which is why I found your post to be so interesting.

  2. michaelchondria

    Great article! I never knew that air pollution could be linked to an increased risk of schizophrenia. The two seem rather different, and it’s quite an interesting find that the two could somehow affect each other. An article I found (https://journals.plos.org/plosbiology/article?id=10.1371/journal.pbio.3000353) writes that “growing evidence from human, animal, and in vitro studies demonstrates that airborne pollutants target the brain and are implicated in neurological and psychiatric disorders..” Although there is not a crystal clear connection yet, the risk of airborne pollutants from large factories is certainly something scary to think about. I have to wonder if people that live near places with large factories, like China have a greater percentage of children with schizophrenia. Hopefully, more research is done on this matter to come to a definitive conclusion on the link between developing schizophrenia and air pollution.

  3. melaria

    Maggiechondria, what an interesting post! I was shocked to find out that pollution and air quality could possibly be related to schizophrenia. In further research, it seems as though there were multiple studies performed to link air pollution to mental disorders. One study examined short term exposure to small particle matte pollution and mental health. The results showed that air pollution could possibly be linked to depression and anxiety in younger people. In addition, in Cincinnati a study was performed when nearly 15000 children checked into a hospital emergency room with varying mental disorders. They later found that most patients had an exposure of small matter pollution that was high (PM2.5) from the three days prior to their emergency room visit. It’s hard to prove whether or not exposure to air pollution is linked to mental health, but I am excited to see the correlation one more research is done!
    https://www.ehn.org/air-pollution-children-mental-health-2640580643.html

  4. kylsquared

    Hey Maggiechondria 🙂 Super unique article choice! I find it fascinating that although modern neuroscience is extremely advanced, we are still not familiar with the effects of air pollution on the brain. This article/budding research may also allude to the fact that air pollution may be more harmful than we think and that protecting our planet may have closer advantages than we’ve thought about. I found this article (https://www.docwirenews.com/home-page-editor-picks/childhood-exposure-to-air-pollution-linked-to-increased-risk-of-schizophrenia/) that states possible links between childhood exposure to air pollution and schizophrenia. Air pollutants have bee known to cause issues such as “disruption of the blood-brain barrier” and protein aggregation which can disrupt the brain’s functioning. Again, super fascinating article; I wonder if the particular field of air pollution and its affects on humans will become a budding field in neuroscience?

  5. Kyla

    Hey Maggiechondria 🙂 Super unique article choice! I find it fascinating that although modern neuroscience is extremely advanced, we are still not familiar with the effects of air pollution on the brain. This article/budding research may also allude to the fact that air pollution may be more harmful than we think and that protecting our planet may have closer advantages than we’ve thought about. I found this article (https://www.docwirenews.com/home-page-editor-picks/childhood-exposure-to-air-pollution-linked-to-increased-risk-of-schizophrenia/) that states possible links between childhood exposure to air pollution and schizophrenia. Air pollutants have bee known to cause issues such as “disruption of the blood-brain barrier” and protein aggregation which can disrupt the brain’s functioning. Again, super fascinating article; I wonder if the particular field of air pollution and its affects on humans will become a budding field in neuroscience?

  6. largeintestein

    It’s truly startling to think that humans have caused so much damage to our own environment that we are starting to see biological effects on our own population. I found an article that really focused on the numbers from the same study you wrote about. According to this article, https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/327438, the children exposed to the 25 micrograms per cubic meter of air pollution instead of 10 micrograms per cubic meter, there was a 60% greater risk of Schizophrenia. That is definitely not a coincidence!

  7. Bacterina

    Maggiecondria! I never knew there was a correlation between schizophrenia and air pollution. I think that it was a great topic choice because I haven’t really seen much written about the neurological repercussions of climate change. It is very interesting that this is a topic not often talked about and makes me wonder what other mental illnesses could be caused by environmental conditions. I feel that it is important for these issues to be spoken about because as climate change worsens we will begin irreversible effects, like schizophrenia, on animals, humans, and the environment. Scienceshttps://www.niehs.nih.gov/research/programs/geh/climatechange/health_impacts/neurological_diseases/index.cfm This article by the National Insitute of Environmental Health elaborates on a multitude of diseases from respiratory distress from algal blooms to increases of stress stemming from environmental changes. In such a pivotal time of climate change where we have really begun to see the harmful effects, it is crucial we are aware of all of the effects and work to combat this horrible environmental change.

  8. nucleahtide

    Hi Maggiechondria! I think it is very interesting how seemingly unrelated factors can contribute to development of schizophrenia. I was thinking, could pollution possibly be a middle factor in the development of schizophrenia? According to the below article, another contributor to schizophrenia can be stress. Possibly, people who live in higher pollution areas tend to have a lower income, leading to a higher level of stress.

    https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/schizophrenia/causes/

  9. brianaryfission

    Following up on your analysis of the increasing concern around schizophrenia, I found it really interesting that the causes of schizophrenia and effects are vague. This website (https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/schizophrenia/symptoms-causes/syc-20354443) says that “the actual brain structure and central nervous structure” have a significant difference in those affected by schizophrenia and those not, yet in terms of the causes of schizophrenia the website still stays really vague, It just goes to show that there is still so much unknown within the way our brain functions.

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