• Qi Zhao, Sara Kress, Iana Markevych, Dietrich Berdel, Andrea von Berg, Monika Gappa, Sibylle Koletzko, Carl-Peter Bauer, Holger Schulz, Marie Standl, Joachim Heinrich, and Tamara Schikowski.
• Department of Epidemiology, IUF-Leibniz Research Institute for Environmental Medicine, Düsseldorf, Germany.
• Chest. 2021 Jul 1; 160 (1): 249-258.

BackgroundAbnormal weights, eg, obesity, has shown a strong modifying effect on the association between air pollution exposure and lung function impairment in adults.Research QuestionHow might weight status modify the effects of long-term air pollution exposure on adolescents' lung function, particularly in areas with pollution levels much lower than the current European Union (EU) air quality standards?Study Design And MethodsIn this observational study, we investigated 2,224 adolescents from the German Infant Study on the Influence of Nutrition Intervention Plus Environmental and Genetic Influences on Allergy Development and the Influence of Life Style Factors on the Development of the Immune System and Allergies in East and West Germany birth cohorts. Lung function was measured at age 15 years. Underweight, normal weight, and overweight or obese were defined using percentiles of BMI. Average concentrations of air pollution were modelled at residential addresses at four exposure windows between 0 and 15 years. Multivariate linear regression models were fitted by weight group on lung function with exposure at each window or cumulative exposure since birth.ResultsThe median air pollution concentrations were half to two-thirds of the EU standards. Significant associations were observed only for individuals who were underweight and overweight or obese. For example, per interquartile range increase in nitrogen dioxide at the 15-year exposure window, FEV1 declined by -2.9% (95% CI, -5.2% to -0.5%) for the underweight group and -3.4% (95% CI, -5.4% to -1.2%) for the overweight or obese group. Similarly, longer exposure to moderate-level air pollution since birth was associated significantly with lung function impairment for groups with abnormal weight.InterpretationExposure to low to moderate levels of air pollution was associated with lung function impairment for adolescents with abnormal weight. Longer exposure aggravated the adverse effect. Whether a critical exposure window since birth exists warrants further exploration.Copyright © 2021 American College of Chest Physicians. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

3 keywords...

hide…