Air pollution has been known to be bad for the health. There is no debate on this. Now there is a new study that says air pollution has links to diabetes on kids.
Air pollution and diabetes have never been linked together. At least not until a new study that links both as potential risk on children. A study that has followed Latino children have found that those who live in areas with high levels of air pollution have a greater chance of having type 2 diabetes.
Researchers have followed the health of Latino children for 3.5 years. During that time levels of beta cells have been monitored. These cells can be found in the pancreas and are responsible for maintaining sugar levels in the blood.
The study has found that air pollution has an effect on beta cells. Air pollution breaks down these cells. The study has found that when the children turn 18, 13 percent of these cells aren't functioning normally. The cells have become less efficient, making them more prone to type 2 diabetes.
Michael Goran is one of the authors of the study and a co-director of the Diabetes and Obesity Research Institute at the Keck School of Medicine in the University of California. He has noted that poor air quality could be a catalyst for diabetes and obesity. The exposure of children to air pollution could have an effect on them being prone to diabetes.
The children in the study have been in areas that have high levels of nitrogen oxide and other air pollutants, according to USC News. These areas have been identified to be high in air pollution by the US Environmental Protection Agency. For the study, 314 overweight Latino children have from the ages eight to 15 years have been monitored.
At the time the children enrolled for the Study of Latino Adolescents at Risk of Type 2 Diabetes (SOLAR), none of them have shown signs of diabetes, as Science Daily reports. At the end of the study, the participants had 27 percent higher blood sugar levels. The research has found that beta cells that have not been damaged are compensating for those damaged by air pollution. This has caused the cells to burn out and become even less efficient.
Frank Gilliland, senior author of the study and a professor of Preventive Medicine has said that the study has shown that air pollution could also be a contributing factor to type 2 diabetes. The children in the study have not yet developed diabetes but have been considered as pre-diabetic. The study has shown that air pollution has links to diabetes on kids. A study has also noted that online ratings can be stressful for doctors.
