Crisis and Management

Poor air quality could be a very valid reason behind getting a stroke or suffering from loss of memory, said two recent US studies published in the Archives of Internal Medicine.

One study reported a higher risk of stroke among Boston-area residents after days where the air quality was “moderate” as opposed to “good,” especially when traffic-related pollution was high.

The other study, which looked at thousands of women, documented a faster long-term decline in thinking and memory skills in women living in higher-pollution areas of the US.

The studies could not zero in on pollutants as primary reasons for strokes or memory problems, but previous studies have supported findings of negative effects on the heart and on blood vessels.

Gregory Wellenius of Brown University in Rhode Island, lead author of the stroke study, said that blood vessels dilate and constrict in response to the outside environment in an attempt to keep blood pressure constant.

But air pollution might affect the body’s ability to regulate blood pressure, which in turn could trigger a stroke in people who are already at risk, he added.

That same effect could explain why, over a longer period of time, being exposed to air pollution might be associated with declining thinking and memory skills.

“The blood flow to the brain is incredibly important for cognitive function. There may be effects … on blood flow to the brain that we’re not yet aware of that could be affecting cognitive function,” Wellenius said.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, February 15th, 2012 at 9:45 pm and is filed under Environment. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.