42 Studies Confirm: Air Pollution Is Linked to Higher Parkinson's Risk

(Suriyawut Suriya/Canva)

We know that air pollution is bad for us, and if we think about it, it's probably obvious that it's particularly bad for our lungs.

But many people don't realize how much it affects many other bodily systems.

Pollutants in the air don't just get into our lung tissue and stay there.

The tiniest pollutants from car and truck tailpipe emissions, industrial sources, and wildfires can penetrate through the lungs and start circulating in our blood, affecting other organs. These fine particles can trigger inflammation and oxidative stress throughout the body

They can even get into the brain.

Studies in animals and people have shown evidence that those smallest particulates – known as PM 2.5 – contribute to a laundry list of brain-related maladies, from dementia to MS, depression and anxiety, Alzheimer's, brain tumors, and stroke.

Add another one to the list: A new meta-analysis led by researchers at the University of Cambridge in the UK, which reviewed decades of research, suggests that breathing polluted air for years could increase the risk of developing Parkinson's disease.

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The study, published in Environment International, analyzed 42 prior studies involving populations in North America, Europe, and Asia.

It's the largest review yet to examine whether long-term exposure to outdoor air pollution is linked to several major neurodegenerative diseases.

The clearest signal emerged for Parkinson's disease, which was the focus of 26 of the analyzed studies.

Researchers found that for every 5-microgram-per-cubic-meter increase in long-term exposure to PM 2.5 (fine particulate air pollution), the risk of developing Parkinson's increased by about 10 percent.

Exposure to larger pollution particles, called PM 10, was associated with an 18 percent higher ri…