Lung development in children from smoggy communities tends to lag behind that of children raised in less polluted areas, according to a study funded in part by the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences and the Environmental Protection Agency.
The findings were from the first 4 years of data collected from the ongoing Children's Health Study, a 10-year investigation of long-term effects of smog on more than 3000 children in 12 southern California communities.
Normally, lung function increases steadily until individuals reach their late teens (for females) or early 20s (for males). During the 4-year study period, however, yearly lung function tests showed that children's lung function growth, on average, tended to be higher in cleaner communities and lower in more polluted areas.
The greatest effect was seen in the approximately 1500 children who were followed up from ages 10 to 14, in which the lung function . . . [Full Text of this Article]
