Association of traffic-related air pollution with cognitive development in children
Open accessAbstract
BACKGROUND: Air pollution from traffic has been associated with cardiorespiratory diseases in children and adults, but there is little information on its potential neurotoxic effects. This study aimed to investigate the association between exposure to nitrogen dioxide (NO(2)), as a marker of traffic-related air pollution, and cognitive development in children. METHODS: A population-based birth cohort from southern Spain was followed from the age of 4 years for 1 year. Complete data for analyses were gathered on 210 children living in urban and rural areas. NO(2) exposure was predicted by means of land use regression models. A standardised version of the McCarthy Scales of Children's Abilities (MSCA) was used to assess children's motor and cognitive abilities. Multivariate analyses were performed to evaluate the relation between exposure to NO(2) and MSCA outcomes, adjusting for potential confounders. RESULTS: A negative effect of NO(2) was found across all MSCA subscales, despite low predicted NO(2) exposure levels (5-36 microg/m(3)). Children exposed to higher NO(2) (>24.75 microg/m(3)) showed a decrease of 4.19 points in the general cognitive score and decreases of 6.71, 7.37 and 8.61 points in quantitative, working memory and gross motor areas, respectively. However, except for gross motor function, associations were not statistically significant. CONCLUSION: Although results were not statistically significant, the associations found between exposure to NO(2) and cognitive functions suggest that traffic-related air pollution may have an adverse effect on neurodevelopment, especially early in life, even at low exposure levels.
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Studies of individual components of air pollution have found links to neurodevelopmental outcomes, including effects on IQ, language development, executive function, and psychomotor development.
“Studies of individual components of air pollution have found links to neurodevelopmental outcomes, including effects on intelligence quotient (IQ), language development, executive function, and psychomotor development [7–10].”
From A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Multiple Airborne Pollutants and Autism Spectrum Disorder (2016) · cites this paper as [8]
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- Authors
- Freire, C., Ramos, R., Puertas, R., Lopez-Espinosa, M.-J., Julvez, J., Aguilera, I., Cruz, F., Fernandez, M.-F., Sunyer, J., & Olea, N.
- Affiliations
- Universidad de Granada (ES)
- Center for Research in Environmental Epidemiology (ES)
- Universitat Pompeu Fabra (ES)
- Corresponding author
- Freire, Carmen
- Venue
- Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health
- Publisher
- BMJ
- Published
- 2009-08-13
- Volume
- 64
- Issue
- 3
- Pages
- 223-228
- ISSN
- 0141-7681 (ISSN-L)
- 0143-005X
- 1470-2738
- OpenAlex
- W2142055039
- Cited by
- 183
- References
- 40
- Citations by year
- 2026: 3 · 2025: 6 · 2024: 7 · 2023: 6 · 2022: 16 · 2021: 15 · 2020: 11 · 2019: 15 · 2018: 12 · 2017: 13 · 2016: 16 · 2015: 14 · 2014: 10 · 2013: 13 · 2012: 10
- FWCI
- 6.16
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- green
- hdl.handle.net
- Licence
- cc-by-nc-nd
- Locations
- Journal of Epidemiology & Community Health (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Institutional Repository of the University of Granada (University of Granada) (submittedVersion, cc-by-nc-nd)
- LSHTM Research Online (London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine) (submittedVersion)
- Zenodo (CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research) (submittedVersion, other-oa)
- Funders
- European Commission
- Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación
- Topics
- Physical Sciences › Environmental Science › Health, Toxicology and Mutagenesis › Air Quality and Health Impacts
- Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Environmental Justice and Health Disparities
- Physical Sciences › Environmental Science › Health, Toxicology and Mutagenesis › Indoor Air Quality and Microbial Exposure
- Keywords
- traffic-related air pollution, nitrogen dioxide, cognitive development, brain development, children, McCarthy Scales of Children's Abilities, working memory, gross motor function, low-dose exposure, urban-rural differences, land use regression
- MeSH terms
- Adult, Air Pollutants, Air Pollution, Vehicle Emissions, Child Development, Child, Preschool, Cognition, Environmental Exposure, Female, Humans, Infant, Intelligence Tests, Learning Disabilities, Male, Nitrogen Dioxide, Rural Population, Spain, Urban Population, Multivariate Analysis
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