Exposure to air pollution is linked to an increased risk of hospitalization for mental illness, according to the most comprehensive study of its kind.
The research, involving more than 200,000 people Scotlandfound that increased exposure to nitrogen dioxide in particular was associated with higher numbers of people admitted to hospital for behavioral disorders and mental illnesses.
Previously published research on the health effects of long-term exposure to ambient air pollution has tended to focus on deaths rather than hospitalizations and poor physical rather than mental health. , the researchers said.
The study found that air pollution was linked to increased risks of hospitalization for mental and physical health reasons.
Tighter environmental restrictions would benefit millions of people and reduce the impact on secondary care, the researchers said.
Dr Mary Abed Al Ahad from the University of St Andrews, who led the study, said policies to tackle air pollution and shift to renewable energy could help ease the burden on hospitals for people with long-term physical and mental illnesses.
“Policies and interventions targeting air pollution emissions, such as zero-emission zones or incentives for renewable energy in the transport and power generation sectors, could help ease the burden of long-term hospital care term, both locally and globally.
Analysis of data tracked from Public Health Scotland looked at four key pollutants between 2002 and 2017 as well as the impact of ambient air pollution.
The researchers relied on individual data from the Scottish Longitudinal Study, which represents 5% of the Scottish population and includes demographic information from linked censuses.
A total of 202,237 people aged 17 and over were included in the study. published in the open access journal BMJ Open.
Their state of health and hospitalizations for cardiovascular, respiratory, infectious, mental illnesses or behavioral disorders were monitored using data from Public Health Scotland.
They were linked to the levels of four pollutants from road traffic and industry: nitrogen dioxide (NO2); sulfur dioxide (SO2); particle diameter of at least 10 μm (PM10); and small particles of 2.5 μm or less (PM2.5) per 1 km2 in each person’s residential zip code.
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Average cumulative exposure to air pollution was strongly associated with higher rates of hospitalizations, for both mental and physical illnesses. Higher cumulative exposure to NO2PM10 and PM2.5 were associated with a higher incidence of all-cause hospitalizations.
Ioannis Bakolis, a professor of public mental health and statistics at King’s College London who was not involved in the study, said the “large-scale” data had been “analyzed appropriately” and provided evidence additional information on the link between air pollution and mental health.
Research has already shown how people who spend their childhood in areas with high levels of air pollution may be more likely to develop mental disorders later in life.
But a study by researchers in the United States and Denmark suggested a link between air pollution and an increased risk of mental health problems, including bipolar disorder, schizophrenia and personality disorders.
Between 1% and 2% of the UK population will suffer from bipolar disorder in their lifetime, with similar figures for schizophrenia. It is estimated that around 5% of people in the UK suffer from a personality disorder at some point.