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According to a study published in the journal Jama Psychiatry, long-term exposure to low levels of air pollutants is associated with an increased incidence of depression and anxiety in the elderly.
After respiratory and lung diseases and the impact on physical health in general, it is the turn of the impact of pollution on mental health to be examined by researchers from Harvard and Emory universities in the United States. , especially in the elderly.
Exposure to different pollutants
For this work, the authors gathered data from more than 9 million people benefiting from Medicare, the American government’s health insurance system, for people over the age of 64.
Among all these data, the authors were able to determine that 1.52 million people had been diagnosed with depression during the period 2005-2016, according to Medicare. In parallel, the researchers mapped the pollution levels and compared them to the addresses of the selected patients.
The pollutants to which the volunteers were exposed were fine particles, nitrogen dioxide and ozone. This type of pollution can be emitted by cars, power plants, refineries…
An impact of pollution on mental health
Results: the researchers observed “statistically significant harmful associations between long-term exposure to high levels of air pollution and an increased risk of depression diagnosis at the end of life“. Moreover, they note that “l“Socioeconomically disadvantaged people have a much higher risk of late-life depression in this study.”
According to the scientists, these elderly people, who are simultaneously exposed to social stress and poor environmental conditions, including air pollution, are particularly susceptible to pollution-related depression due to their lung and brain vulnerability. “Although depression is less common in the elderly compared to the younger population, there can be serious consequences, such as cognitive impairment, comorbid physical illnesses and death.“.
The opinion of Dr Céline Tran, psychiatrist in Paris
“The authors of this work explain that they have highlighted inflammatory phenomena and that this inflammatory damage could release toxic substances for the brain.” explains the psychiatrist. “They stress the need for additional studies to support their conclusions but it seems to me quite plausible that pollution has an impact on mental health and brain damage, as it has been proven its role in lung cancer ” concludes the doctor.