Feeling a bit confused or even a little besides yourself? Air pollution could be the cause. Feeble humor aside, a new science study says exposure to air pollution damages the brain of developing mice. That's not a joke. Researchers at University of Rochester concluded that mice exposed to fine particle pollution in their first two weeks of life developed brain abnormalities consistent with patterns found in humans suffering from schizophrenia and autism. The effects were mainly observed in male mice. This finding is consistent with statistics showing boys and men more likely to be diagnosed with these disorders. The study is published in the journal Environmental Health Perspectives.
Atmospheric particulates like those produced by power plants, industries and vehicles damaged the development of white matter in the mice brain. Brain cavities filled with neural fluids were enlarged up to three times normal size. Dilation of cranial ventricles has been linked to human schizophrenia and autism. Breathing contaminated air also increased the level of a neurotransmitter, glutamate. Glutamate is found in abnormally high levels both of these disorders. The level of pollution in the experiments matched that found at rush hour in a medium sized US city. A previous study at University of Southern California and the University of California found that children living the first year of their lives in areas of high atmospheric pollution were three times more likely to develop autism than children starting out in cleaner environments. Health experts are disturbed by the growing level of autism found in human populations. Whether this "autism epidemic" is due to better detection methods or combination of environmental causes is not fully understood. However, the study's lead author, Dr. Cory-Slechta, suggested changes to air pollution regulation should be considered.