Association of early-life exposure to air and noise pollution with youth mental health: findings from the ALSPAC cohort
Background: Increasing evidence suggests that air pollution exposure contributes to the development of mental health problems, including psychosis and depression. However, little is known about the importance of early-life exposure, nor the potential role of noise pollution, a correlate of air pollu...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Elsevier
2024-04-01
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| Series: | The Lancet Planetary Health |
| Online Access: | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2542519624000767 |
| _version_ | 1797202966214606848 |
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| author | Joanne B Newbury, PhD Jon Heron, PhD James B Kirkbride, ProfPhD Andrew Boyd, MSc Richard Thomas, MSc Stanley Zammit, ProfPhD Helen L Fisher, PhD Ioannis Bakolis, PhD |
| author_facet | Joanne B Newbury, PhD Jon Heron, PhD James B Kirkbride, ProfPhD Andrew Boyd, MSc Richard Thomas, MSc Stanley Zammit, ProfPhD Helen L Fisher, PhD Ioannis Bakolis, PhD |
| author_sort | Joanne B Newbury, PhD |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Background: Increasing evidence suggests that air pollution exposure contributes to the development of mental health problems, including psychosis and depression. However, little is known about the importance of early-life exposure, nor the potential role of noise pollution, a correlate of air pollution. We examined the association of exposure to air and noise pollution from pregnancy to age 12 years with three mental health problems assessed at ages 12, 18, and 24 years. Methods: Data were from the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (ALSPAC), which tracks the development of about 14 000 babies who had expected delivery dates between April 1, 1991, and Dec 31, 1992, in Avon, UK. This was linked with novel data on nitrogen dioxide, PM2·5, and noise pollution in pregnancy, childhood (ages 1–9 years), and adolescence (ages 10–12 years). Psychotic experiences, depression, and anxiety were measured at ages 12, 18, and 24 years. Logistic regression models were controlled for individual-level, family-level, and area-level confounders, and e-values were calculated to estimate residual confounding. Findings: Participants exposed to higher PM2.5, particularly during pregnancy, had greater odds for psychotic experiences (adjusted odds ratio 1·17 [95% CI 1·05–1·30]) and depression (1·11 [1·01–1·22]). There was little evidence associating nitrogen dioxide or noise pollution with psychotic experiences or depression. Conversely, higher nitrogen dioxide (but not PM2·5) exposure in pregnancy (1·16 [1·01–1·33]), and higher noise pollution in childhood (1·20 [1·06-1·37]) and adolescence (1·17 [1·02-1·35]), were associated with greater odds for anxiety. Interpretation: Our study builds on evidence linking air pollution to psychosis and depression and provides rare longitudinal evidence linking noise pollution to anxiety. Our findings indicate that air pollution exposure earlier in development (eg, during pregnancy) might be particularly important, and suggest a degree of specificity in terms of pollutant-outcome associations. If causal, our findings suggest that interventions to reduce air pollution would improve global mental health. Funding: Wellcome Trust, UK Medical Research Council–Wellcome, and University of Bristol. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-24T08:11:50Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-7ded58084f744bbc8a2eb0dfcde01170 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2542-5196 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-24T08:11:50Z |
| publishDate | 2024-04-01 |
| publisher | Elsevier |
| record_format | Article |
| series | The Lancet Planetary Health |
| spelling | doaj.art-7ded58084f744bbc8a2eb0dfcde011702024-04-17T04:49:43ZengElsevierThe Lancet Planetary Health2542-51962024-04-018S11Association of early-life exposure to air and noise pollution with youth mental health: findings from the ALSPAC cohortJoanne B Newbury, PhD0Jon Heron, PhD1James B Kirkbride, ProfPhD2Andrew Boyd, MSc3Richard Thomas, MSc4Stanley Zammit, ProfPhD5Helen L Fisher, PhD6Ioannis Bakolis, PhD7Population Health Sciences, Bristol Medical School, University of Bristol, Bristol, UK; Correspondence to: Dr Joanne B Newbury, Population Health Sciences, Bristol Medical School, University of Bristol, Bristol BS8 2BN, UKPopulation Health Sciences, Bristol Medical School, University of Bristol, Bristol, UKDivision of Psychiatry, University College London, London, UKUK Longitudinal Linkage CollaborationUK Longitudinal Linkage CollaborationDivision of Psychological Medicine and Clinical Neurosciences, Cardiff University, Cardiff, UKInstitute of Psychiatry, Psychology, and Neuroscience, King's College London, London, UKInstitute of Psychiatry, Psychology, and Neuroscience, King's College London, London, UKBackground: Increasing evidence suggests that air pollution exposure contributes to the development of mental health problems, including psychosis and depression. However, little is known about the importance of early-life exposure, nor the potential role of noise pollution, a correlate of air pollution. We examined the association of exposure to air and noise pollution from pregnancy to age 12 years with three mental health problems assessed at ages 12, 18, and 24 years. Methods: Data were from the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (ALSPAC), which tracks the development of about 14 000 babies who had expected delivery dates between April 1, 1991, and Dec 31, 1992, in Avon, UK. This was linked with novel data on nitrogen dioxide, PM2·5, and noise pollution in pregnancy, childhood (ages 1–9 years), and adolescence (ages 10–12 years). Psychotic experiences, depression, and anxiety were measured at ages 12, 18, and 24 years. Logistic regression models were controlled for individual-level, family-level, and area-level confounders, and e-values were calculated to estimate residual confounding. Findings: Participants exposed to higher PM2.5, particularly during pregnancy, had greater odds for psychotic experiences (adjusted odds ratio 1·17 [95% CI 1·05–1·30]) and depression (1·11 [1·01–1·22]). There was little evidence associating nitrogen dioxide or noise pollution with psychotic experiences or depression. Conversely, higher nitrogen dioxide (but not PM2·5) exposure in pregnancy (1·16 [1·01–1·33]), and higher noise pollution in childhood (1·20 [1·06-1·37]) and adolescence (1·17 [1·02-1·35]), were associated with greater odds for anxiety. Interpretation: Our study builds on evidence linking air pollution to psychosis and depression and provides rare longitudinal evidence linking noise pollution to anxiety. Our findings indicate that air pollution exposure earlier in development (eg, during pregnancy) might be particularly important, and suggest a degree of specificity in terms of pollutant-outcome associations. If causal, our findings suggest that interventions to reduce air pollution would improve global mental health. Funding: Wellcome Trust, UK Medical Research Council–Wellcome, and University of Bristol.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2542519624000767 |
| spellingShingle | Joanne B Newbury, PhD Jon Heron, PhD James B Kirkbride, ProfPhD Andrew Boyd, MSc Richard Thomas, MSc Stanley Zammit, ProfPhD Helen L Fisher, PhD Ioannis Bakolis, PhD Association of early-life exposure to air and noise pollution with youth mental health: findings from the ALSPAC cohort The Lancet Planetary Health |
| title | Association of early-life exposure to air and noise pollution with youth mental health: findings from the ALSPAC cohort |
| title_full | Association of early-life exposure to air and noise pollution with youth mental health: findings from the ALSPAC cohort |
| title_fullStr | Association of early-life exposure to air and noise pollution with youth mental health: findings from the ALSPAC cohort |
| title_full_unstemmed | Association of early-life exposure to air and noise pollution with youth mental health: findings from the ALSPAC cohort |
| title_short | Association of early-life exposure to air and noise pollution with youth mental health: findings from the ALSPAC cohort |
| title_sort | association of early life exposure to air and noise pollution with youth mental health findings from the alspac cohort |
| url | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2542519624000767 |
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