TY - JOUR
T1 - Air quality improvement and cognitive function benefit
T2 - Insight from clean air action in China
AU - Hu, Xiangming
AU - Nie, Zhiqiang
AU - Ou, Yanqiu
AU - Qian, Zhengmin
AU - McMillin, Stephen Edward
AU - Aaron, Hannah E.
AU - Zhou, Yingling
AU - Dong, Guanghui
AU - Dong, Haojian
N1 - Funding Information:
This research was supported by Department of Science and Technology of Guangdong Province, China (No. 2020B1111170011 ), Guangzhou Municipal Science and Technology Bureau (No. 202102080466 ), the National Key Research and Development Program of China (No. 2016YFC1301202 , No. 2018YFE0106900 ), and National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. 82103823 , No. 82073502 , No. 81872582 , No. 81872583 , No. M-0420 , No. 81903287 , No. 82170259 ).
Publisher Copyright:
© 2022 The Authors
PY - 2022/11
Y1 - 2022/11
N2 - Introduction: Epidemiological evidence suggests associations between long-term exposure to air pollution and accelerated cognitive decline. China implemented a strict clean air action plan in 2013; however, it is unclear whether the improvement of air quality has alleviated cognitive impairment in the population. Methods: From the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study, 8536 Chinese adults were enrolled in 2011 and followed up in 2015. Satellite-based spatiotemporal models were used to estimate exposure to air pollutants (including particles with diameters ≤1.0 μm [PM1], ≤2.5 μm [PM2.5], ≤10 μm [PM10], nitrogen dioxide [NO2], and ozone [O3]). Cognitive function was evaluated using a structured questionnaire in three dimensions: episodic memory, orientation and attention, and visuoconstruction. The associations between changes in the levels of air pollutants and cognitive function were elucidated by a logistic model. The Bayesian Kernel Machine Regression (BKMR) model was applied to evaluate the cumulative effect of air pollutants. Results: The mean (standard deviation) age of all participants was 58.6 (8.7) years. The odds ratio (95% confidence interval) between the highest and the lowest quartile of PM1 exposure reduction for cognitive impairment was 0.46 (0.41, 0.53) after adjusting for confounders. Similar protective effects of cognitive function were observed with the decrease in the level of PM2.5 (0.34 [0.30, 0.39]), PM10 (0.54 [0.48, 0.62]), and NO2 (0.59 [0.51, 0.67]), while the reduction in O3 appeared to be less related to changes in cognitive function (OR: 0.97 [0.85, 1.10]). The protective association of PM1 reduction was stronger in males than in females. Decreased in PM2.5 dominate the cognitive function benefit relative to PM1, PM10, NO2. Conclusions: The implementation of the clean air action plan led to a significant reduction in PM1, PM2.5, PM10, and NO2, which could slow the decline of cognitive function, while a reduction in O3 may not.
AB - Introduction: Epidemiological evidence suggests associations between long-term exposure to air pollution and accelerated cognitive decline. China implemented a strict clean air action plan in 2013; however, it is unclear whether the improvement of air quality has alleviated cognitive impairment in the population. Methods: From the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study, 8536 Chinese adults were enrolled in 2011 and followed up in 2015. Satellite-based spatiotemporal models were used to estimate exposure to air pollutants (including particles with diameters ≤1.0 μm [PM1], ≤2.5 μm [PM2.5], ≤10 μm [PM10], nitrogen dioxide [NO2], and ozone [O3]). Cognitive function was evaluated using a structured questionnaire in three dimensions: episodic memory, orientation and attention, and visuoconstruction. The associations between changes in the levels of air pollutants and cognitive function were elucidated by a logistic model. The Bayesian Kernel Machine Regression (BKMR) model was applied to evaluate the cumulative effect of air pollutants. Results: The mean (standard deviation) age of all participants was 58.6 (8.7) years. The odds ratio (95% confidence interval) between the highest and the lowest quartile of PM1 exposure reduction for cognitive impairment was 0.46 (0.41, 0.53) after adjusting for confounders. Similar protective effects of cognitive function were observed with the decrease in the level of PM2.5 (0.34 [0.30, 0.39]), PM10 (0.54 [0.48, 0.62]), and NO2 (0.59 [0.51, 0.67]), while the reduction in O3 appeared to be less related to changes in cognitive function (OR: 0.97 [0.85, 1.10]). The protective association of PM1 reduction was stronger in males than in females. Decreased in PM2.5 dominate the cognitive function benefit relative to PM1, PM10, NO2. Conclusions: The implementation of the clean air action plan led to a significant reduction in PM1, PM2.5, PM10, and NO2, which could slow the decline of cognitive function, while a reduction in O3 may not.
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U2 - 10.1016/j.envres.2022.114200
DO - 10.1016/j.envres.2022.114200
M3 - Article
C2 - 36030909
AN - SCOPUS:85137058874
SN - 0013-9351
VL - 214
JO - Environmental Research
JF - Environmental Research
M1 - 114200
ER -