Bridging the environment and neurodevelopment for children’s health: Associations between real-time air pollutant exposures and cognitive outcomes
Research suggests that children’s exposure to pollutants may impact their neurocognitive development. While researchers have found associations between air pollutants and cognitive development, these associations remain underspecified. Further, these exposures occur in the context of the built envir...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Frontiers Media S.A.
2022-10-01
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| Series: | Frontiers in Psychology |
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| Online Access: | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.933327/full |
| _version_ | 1811182092778733568 |
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| author | Josh Medrano Natalie Crnosija Richard W. Prather Devon Payne-Sturges |
| author_facet | Josh Medrano Natalie Crnosija Richard W. Prather Devon Payne-Sturges |
| author_sort | Josh Medrano |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Research suggests that children’s exposure to pollutants may impact their neurocognitive development. While researchers have found associations between air pollutants and cognitive development, these associations remain underspecified. Further, these exposures occur in the context of the built environment and may be exacerbated by local social vulnerability; in this context, individuals may experience a suite of socioenvironmental stressors that lead to increased cumulative risk exposure. In this pilot study, we tested whether real-time-measured personal exposure to PM2.5 relates to children’s executive function and mathematical skills, outcomes that may predict later mathematical performance, general academic performance and even employment outcomes. We recruited 30 families to participate in two rounds in Winter 2020 and Summer 2021. We collected children’s demographic data, as well as data about their living environment. In each round, children carried a small device that collected real-time ambient air pollution data for 3 days; parents logged their children’s activities each day. On the last day, children completed cognitive assessments indexing their working memory (n-back), inhibitory control (Go/No-Go), nonsymbolic math skills (dot comparison), and arithmetic skills (equation verification). Overall, 29 participants had pollutant readings from both rounds, and 21 had a full dataset. Nonparametric statistical analysis revealed no significant differences in ambient air pollution and cognitive performance over time, Spearman’s rho correlation assessment found that PM2.5 was not significantly correlated with cognitive outcomes in R1 and R2. However, the correlations suggested that an increase in PM2.5 was associated with worse working memory, inhibitory control, nonsymbolic skills, and arithmetic skills, at least in R1. We used each participant’s zip code-aggregated Social Vulnerability Index, which range from 0 to 1, with higher numbers indicating more social vulnerability. Wilcoxon Rank-Sum tests indicated that participants living in higher SVI zip codes (≥0.70; n = 15) were not significantly different from those living in lower SVI zip codes (<0.70; n = 14), in terms of their PM2.5 exposures and cognitive performance in each round. We also found that socioeconomic characteristics mattered, such that children whose parent (s) had at least a Master’s degree or earned more than $100,000 a year had lower PM2.5 exposures than children in the other end. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-11T09:27:23Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-dcb3d870dcf84187a35db1f8a829f436 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1664-1078 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-11T09:27:23Z |
| publishDate | 2022-10-01 |
| publisher | Frontiers Media S.A. |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Frontiers in Psychology |
| spelling | doaj.art-dcb3d870dcf84187a35db1f8a829f4362022-12-22T04:32:00ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Psychology1664-10782022-10-011310.3389/fpsyg.2022.933327933327Bridging the environment and neurodevelopment for children’s health: Associations between real-time air pollutant exposures and cognitive outcomesJosh Medrano0Natalie Crnosija1Richard W. Prather2Devon Payne-Sturges3Department of Human Development and Quantitative Methodology, University of Maryland, College Park, MD, United StatesMaryland Institute for Applied Environmental Health, School of Public Health, University of Maryland, College Park, MD, United StatesDepartment of Human Development and Quantitative Methodology, University of Maryland, College Park, MD, United StatesMaryland Institute for Applied Environmental Health, School of Public Health, University of Maryland, College Park, MD, United StatesResearch suggests that children’s exposure to pollutants may impact their neurocognitive development. While researchers have found associations between air pollutants and cognitive development, these associations remain underspecified. Further, these exposures occur in the context of the built environment and may be exacerbated by local social vulnerability; in this context, individuals may experience a suite of socioenvironmental stressors that lead to increased cumulative risk exposure. In this pilot study, we tested whether real-time-measured personal exposure to PM2.5 relates to children’s executive function and mathematical skills, outcomes that may predict later mathematical performance, general academic performance and even employment outcomes. We recruited 30 families to participate in two rounds in Winter 2020 and Summer 2021. We collected children’s demographic data, as well as data about their living environment. In each round, children carried a small device that collected real-time ambient air pollution data for 3 days; parents logged their children’s activities each day. On the last day, children completed cognitive assessments indexing their working memory (n-back), inhibitory control (Go/No-Go), nonsymbolic math skills (dot comparison), and arithmetic skills (equation verification). Overall, 29 participants had pollutant readings from both rounds, and 21 had a full dataset. Nonparametric statistical analysis revealed no significant differences in ambient air pollution and cognitive performance over time, Spearman’s rho correlation assessment found that PM2.5 was not significantly correlated with cognitive outcomes in R1 and R2. However, the correlations suggested that an increase in PM2.5 was associated with worse working memory, inhibitory control, nonsymbolic skills, and arithmetic skills, at least in R1. We used each participant’s zip code-aggregated Social Vulnerability Index, which range from 0 to 1, with higher numbers indicating more social vulnerability. Wilcoxon Rank-Sum tests indicated that participants living in higher SVI zip codes (≥0.70; n = 15) were not significantly different from those living in lower SVI zip codes (<0.70; n = 14), in terms of their PM2.5 exposures and cognitive performance in each round. We also found that socioeconomic characteristics mattered, such that children whose parent (s) had at least a Master’s degree or earned more than $100,000 a year had lower PM2.5 exposures than children in the other end.https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.933327/fullair pollutionPM2.5executive functionmiddle childhoodmathematics |
| spellingShingle | Josh Medrano Natalie Crnosija Richard W. Prather Devon Payne-Sturges Bridging the environment and neurodevelopment for children’s health: Associations between real-time air pollutant exposures and cognitive outcomes Frontiers in Psychology air pollution PM2.5 executive function middle childhood mathematics |
| title | Bridging the environment and neurodevelopment for children’s health: Associations between real-time air pollutant exposures and cognitive outcomes |
| title_full | Bridging the environment and neurodevelopment for children’s health: Associations between real-time air pollutant exposures and cognitive outcomes |
| title_fullStr | Bridging the environment and neurodevelopment for children’s health: Associations between real-time air pollutant exposures and cognitive outcomes |
| title_full_unstemmed | Bridging the environment and neurodevelopment for children’s health: Associations between real-time air pollutant exposures and cognitive outcomes |
| title_short | Bridging the environment and neurodevelopment for children’s health: Associations between real-time air pollutant exposures and cognitive outcomes |
| title_sort | bridging the environment and neurodevelopment for children s health associations between real time air pollutant exposures and cognitive outcomes |
| topic | air pollution PM2.5 executive function middle childhood mathematics |
| url | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.933327/full |
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