What pollutant causes brain damage in children?

What pollutant causes brain damage in children?

Particulate matter (PM) less than 2.5 micrometres in size that are suspended in the air can enter into the brain through the olfactory nerves directly and damage the brain. Also, various components of polluted air like carbon monoxide, sulfur dioxide, etc can dissolve in the blood and reach the brain.

What air pollutant is responsible for brain damage?

Besides studying the brain-related health risks of individual contaminants in air pollution, scientists have studied how levels of particles that are 10 micrometers or smaller (PM10) and particles that are 2.5 micrometers or smaller (PM2.5) are associated with brain-related conditions.

What toxins affect the brain?

Many toxins, such as lead, PCBs, bisphenol A, manganese, and mercury, disrupt dopamine or dopaminergic neurons in the prefrontal cortex (1, 57, 110).

How do toxins affect children?

Exposures to environmental toxins have been linked with higher rates of mental retardation, intellectual impairment, and behavioral problems, such as conduct disorder and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder [16,17,18, 19,20,21,22,23,24,25,26,27,30,31,36,37, 38,39,40,41,42,43,59,60,61].

Which of these pollutants emitted from vehicle emissions affect children’s brain and hearing?

Third, several studies also show that polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), a specific class of pollutants formed from fossil fuel combustion and commonly found in areas of high automobile traffic, contribute to a loss of or damage to white matter in the brain.

What are the different types of pollutants?

Different types of pollutants include:

  • Nitrogen oxides (NOx)
  • Sulfur oxides (SOx)
  • Particulate matter (PM)
  • Ground level ozone (O3)
  • Volatile organic compounds (VOCs)
  • Mercury (Hg)
  • Peroxyacyl nitrates (PANs)
  • and more.

Is carbon monoxide responsible for brain damage?

Depending on the degree and length of exposure, carbon monoxide poisoning can cause: Permanent brain damage. Damage to your heart, possibly leading to life-threatening cardiac complications.

What is toxic to brain cells?

Some of the most common naturally occurring brain toxins that lead to neurotoxicity as a result of long term drug use are beta amyloid (Aβ), glutamate, dopamine, and oxygen radicals. When present in high concentrations, they can lead to neurotoxicity and death (apoptosis).

What causes toxic brain?

National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, a division of the National Institutes of Health, definition: Disease of the brain that alters brain function or structure caused by: Infectious agent (bacteria, virus or prion), Metabolic or mitochondrial dysfunction, Brain tumor or increased pressure in the …

Why are children vulnerable to environmental toxins?

Children at all ages, not just the very young, are at greater risk than adults. Children under age 5 breathe more air, drink more water, and eat more food per unit of body weight than adults do, so they may experience higher rates of exposure to pathogens and pollutants.

What are some environmental toxins?

Environmental toxins are unavoidable….Types of Toxins

  • Arsenic.
  • Atrazine.
  • Dioxins.
  • Lead.
  • Mercury.
  • Perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAs).

What effects does air pollution have on children?

Exposure to air pollution can harm normal growth of lung function in the womb, during childhood and right up to the late teens. In children with asthma, high levels of air pollution are linked to increased asthma attacks.