28 September 2023 – The risk of stroke increases by as much as 30% inside five days of exposure to air pollution, based on a recent study.
Researchers examined 110 observational studies from around the globe that recorded the timing of the stroke and the concentration of common pollutants within the air inside five days of the stroke.
The results of the meta-analysis were published within the journal neurology.
“The impact of air pollution on human health goes beyond the lungs and eyes. It also affects the brain and cardiovascular system,” said University of Jordan researcher Ahmad Tubasi, who led the research NBC News.
“The meta-analysis included more than 18 million cases of ischemic stroke, the most common type of stroke caused by a blood clot traveling to the brain,” NBC reported.
“The researchers found that the risk of stroke was almost 30% higher when people had been exposed to nitrogen dioxide up to five days before. The risk was 26% higher for carbon monoxide, 15% higher for sulfur dioxide and 5% higher for ozone.”
In addition, short-term exposure to nitrogen dioxide was related to a 33 percent higher risk of dying from a stroke. For sulfur dioxide, the chance was even 60 percent higher.
Inhaling positive dust particles causes inflammation and irritation within the lungs. That causes the immune system to kick into gear, which eventually affects the cardiovascular system, says Michael Kleinman of the Air Pollution Health Effects Laboratory on the University of California, Irvine, who was not involved within the study.
“There is a direct connection between what happens in the lungs and what happens in the heart,” he said.