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Children who grow up in areas with high levels of traffic pollution are more likely to be overweight and at increased risk of diabetes, a study suggests.
American researchers — who tracked almost 300 people from pregnancy until they turned 24 — found those who had lived in highly polluted areas had an average body mass bordering on overweight and obese.
In contrast, those who grew up where the air was clearer had a body weight measuring less than the UK average — on the borderline of healthy and overweight.
Researchers also found those exposed to higher pollution levels as children were more likely to have high insulin resistance, considered a precursor to full-blown type 2 diabetes.
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Their findings come as both obesity and type 2 diabetes in the UK have soared in recent years, along with associated, deadly diseases like heart problems, stroke and some types of cancer.
Heart disease is the biggest killer in men over 50 in the UK, Government data shows.
The experts, from the University of Southern California, who published their findings in the journal JAMA Network Open, said the finding suggested ‘the impact of air pollution on health is not subtle’.
They added that while links between insulin resistance and air pollution had been established before, their findings provided evidence for the impact of dirty air — specifically nitrogen oxide levels — on body mass index (BMI).
Children who grow up in areas with high levels of traffic pollution are more likely to be overweight and at increased risk of diabetes, a study suggests. Stock image
This chart shows the estimated average body mass scores (y axis) as they age (x axis). Results show those living in the highest polluted areas (yellow line) had significantly higher BMIs than those in least polluted areas (blue line)
They said this highlighted the importance of weight-control measures in childhood.
‘Implementing preventive measures for weight control early in life may play a pivotal role in mitigating the impact of these environmental factors later in life,’ they wrote.
It comes as data reveals the most heavily polluted area in the UK is Northwood, in West London, where levels of dirty air exceed international guidelines by at least five-fold.
Liverpool is a close second, followed by Greetham in the East Midlands, according to the analysis by air quality specialists, IQ Air (see above map).
Meanwhile, areas with the cleanest air are Dunblane and Saline in Scotland, as well as Newquay on the North coast of Cornwall.
UK laws currently state hourly levels of toxic nitrogen dioxide — a type of nitrogen oxides mainly produced by the burning fossil fuels — must not exceed 200 micrograms per cubic metre of air more than 18 times a year.
However, levels of above this have been recorded in some parts of UK cities.
Air pollution increases the risk of several conditions, including heart attack, stroke and diabetes
The new report comes as both obesity and diabetes levels have skyrocketed in Britain, particularly in young groups.
Two thirds of all adults are now too overweight compared to just half in the mid-90s. Of those, about a quarter are obese.
Additionally, there has been a staggering 39 per cent rise in type 2 diabetes among people under 40, with 168,000 people in Britain now living with the illness.
Health problems from obesity are estimated to cause over 30,000 excess deaths per year in England, and cuts healthy lifespans short for many more.
The researchers of the latest study said exactly how air pollution could be leading to obesity and insulin resistance needed further study.
However, they suggested inhaling microscopic pollutants can cause widespread inflammation in the body which in term disrupts the body’s metabolism, leading to weight gain.
These excess fat deposits cause further inflammation which can disrupt how the body processes insulin, leading to resistance to the hormone and problems with blood sugar levels.
Researchers came to their conclusions after examining data from a long running study in California of 283 people.
BMI levels were measured at the ages of 13, 15 and 24, while insulin resistance was measured in a blood test in their early 20s.
Air quality monitoring was used to determine an average monthly exposure to nitrogen oxides from when the participants were in the womb until they turned 13.