Traffic Pollution Affects Children's Lung Development

City living certainly has a lot to offer for people of all ages. For families with children there are more resources available for teaching and learning, and more opportunities for socialization. And it's faster and easier to get around. But all this convenience comes at a price - exposure to pollutants, which new research has shown can affect how children's lungs develop.

The study involved more than 3,600 children living in southern California. They were followed for up to eight years, from ages 10 to 18, with their lung function being measured every year. There was a clear indication as they got older that the lungs of children who lived within 500 yards of a highway were not developing as well as the lungs of children who lived farther away.

These children were otherwise healthy - they didn't have asthma and didn't smoke - so those issues were ruled out as possible explanations for the results. The researchers also took into consideration indoor pollutants like gas ovens and secondhand cigarette smoke. And in some cases the air quality in the general area was good. The most likely cause of the problem was pollution from the highway.

The research didn't identify any particular pollutants that could be associated with these results. But it's been theorized that the pollutant most to blame was elemental carbon, which comes from diesel emissions and has been known to adversely affect breathing. And highways may have more vehicles that use diesel fuel.

This research exposes a potentially large problem. The researchers have stated that children with less healthy lungs grow into adults with less healthy lungs. And adults with poor lung function will be more susceptible to all kinds of respiratory problems - colds that take longer to go away, chronic bronchitis, asthma, or worse.

As cities grow they have to deal with increasingly larger populations. One of the ways they've done that is to build more housing near busy roads and freeways. And, to accommodate the larger numbers of children, more schools are being built in those areas as well - which means even children who don't live that close may be spending much of their day there.

Now it seems that it might not be a good idea for children to spend a lot of time close to major highways. Even parents who prefer city living might want to consider raising their children farther away from these areas - until, or unless, cleaner-burning vehicles become more common.