A study being conducted in 6 countries in Europe (France, Spain, United Kingdome, Lithuania, Norway, and Greece), the HELIX Study, has found that prenatal and early childhood exposure to traffic related air pollution is associated with DNA damage (shortened telomeres on chromosomes) at 8 years of age.
Telomeres are sections of repeated DNA at the ends of chromosome that do not function as genes. Shortened telomere length is associated with aging, and is thought to contribute to cardiovascular and other diseases that occur as people get older. Oxidative stress is known to make telomeres shorter.
Exposure to air pollution and distance from residence to the nearest road were determined during the mother’s pregnancy, at birth, and at 1 year of age. Mothers and children were examined again when the children were 8 years old, and blood was drawn to assess the telomere length in white blood cells.
In the new study, exposure to nitrogen oxides before and after birth, to fine particulate (PM2.5) air pollution after birth, and distance of the early childhood residence from the nearest road were all associated with shortened telomere length. Having shortened telomeres could make people more susceptible to chronic disease in later life. This study shows why it is so important to have stricter standards for air pollution and vehicle mileage, so that people are healthier from childhood to later life.
The study was published in Environmental Health Perspectives https://ehp.niehs.nih.gov/doi/pdf/10.1289/EHP4148
