Air pollution linked to higher risk of autoimmune diseases

Long-term exposure to air pollution can increase the risk of disease.

Exposure to particulates has been linked to a number of health problems. A global review concluded that almost every cell in the body could be affected by dirty air.

Researchers at the University of Verona found that long-term exposure to high levels of air pollution was associated with a higher risk of several diseases.

Air pollution may be damaging every organ in the body.

The study took comprehensive medical information about 81,363 men and women on an Italian database who were at risk of breaking their bones. About 12% of people were diagnosed with an autoimmune disease during this period.

Each patient was linked to the nearest air quality monitoring station.

The study looked at exposure to fine particulate matter, which is produced by sources such as vehicles and power stations. Concentration levels of 30µg/m3 for PM10 and 20µg/m3 for PM 2.5 are considered harmful to human health.

The study concluded that long-term exposure to particulates above these levels was associated with a 12% and 13% higher risk of developing an autoimmune disease.

The director of the Centre for Inflammation Research and Translational Medicine at Brunel University London said: "This study further supports the mounting evidence suggesting a link between air pollution exposure and immune-mediated diseases."

There is no doubt that there is a link between air pollution and diseases.

She said more research was needed to determine why some areas of Italy had seen heightened growth in autoimmune conditions, and to look at the impact of passive smoking on the findings.

The researchers acknowledge that their findings don't prove a link and that other factors may be at play, including lack of information on when autoimmune disease symptoms began, or that air quality monitoring might not reflect personal exposure to pollutants.

Smoking and air pollution have been linked to immune system abnormality, and Dr Giovanni Adami, one of the report's authors and a rheumatologist, said that smoking was a predisposing factor for rheumatoid arthritis.

Air pollution is one of the greatest environmental risks to health, according to the World Health Organization. There is a strong biological rationale behind our findings. It is difficult to prove a relationship. It is not likely that randomised controlled studies could be conducted on that topic.