The study says air pollution could be responsible for up to 21 percent of dementia cases, if the findings translate to the general population, the report said. “Although the link between air pollution and Alzheimer’s disease is a new scientific frontier, we now have evidence that air pollution, like tobacco, is dangerous to the aging brain,” he added. Women with the genetic variant APOE4, which increases the risk of Alzheimer’s disease, were more likely to be affected by high levels of air pollution. A growing number of studies look at the long-term health effects of air pollution. Columbia University researchers found that prenatal exposure to air pollution could result in children with greater anxiety, depression and attention-span disorders.

Source: New York Times February 04, 2017 06:09 UTC