Exposure to Pollutant May Alter There Gut Microorganisms and Make Infants More Prone to Diseases and Hinder Brain Development

Infant exposure to pollution changes gut flora and may increase illness risk, according to a new study. Pollutants inhaled alter the growing microbiota in ways that may encourage allergies and obesity and impact the brain.

(Photo : Jason Sung/Unsplash)

Studying Gut Microorganisms

According to a recent CU Boulder study, cited by ScienceDaily, a baby's inner world of gut bacteria, or microbiome, is impacted by air pollution during the first six months of life in ways that may raise the risk of allergies, obesity, and diabetes and even affect brain development.

The study, which was just released in the journal Gut Microbes, is the first to demonstrate a connection between changes in baby microbial health during this crucial period of development and breathed pollutants, such as those from industry, wildfires, and traffic.

The same team observed similar findings in young adults in earlier studies.

Also Read: UN Report Shows that Heat Waves and Wildfires are Worsening Air Pollution  

Exposure to Pollutants

According to senior author Tanya Alderete, assistant professor of integrative physiology at CU Boulder, "our work adds to the expanding body of data indicating that air pollution exposure, even during infancy, may affect the gut microbiota, with critical consequences for growth and development."

A newborn has few bacterial residents at birth.

The microorganisms affect the first two to three years of life depending on things like mother's milk, solid food, antibiotics, and other environmental factors.

These bacteria affect several bodily functions, including those that regulate appetite, insulin sensitivity, immunology, mood, and cognition.

They also produce metabolites (or byproducts) when they break down food or chemicals in the gut.

While most microbiome compositions are advantageous, others have been linked to type 2 diabetes, asthma, Chrohn's disease, and other chronic disorders.

The first author, Maximilian Bailey, who received his master's degree in integrative physiology in May and is now a medical student at Stanford University, stated that "the microbiome plays a role in nearly every physiological process in the body" and that "the environment that develops in those first few years of life sticks with you."

Extensive Study

To conduct the study, the researchers collected fecal samples from 103 Latino newborns participating in the Southern California Mother's Milk Study who were healthy and predominantly breastfed.

Using their postal codes and information from the U.S., They calculated exposure to PM2.5 and PM10 (fine inhalable particles from things like factories, wildfires, and construction sites) and Nitrogen Dioxide (NO2), a gas primarily emitted from cars, using the Environmental Protection Agency's Air Quality System, which records hourly data from monitoring systems.

In a previous study, Alderete discovered that babies born to Latinas exposed to greater amounts of air pollution during pregnancy grew remarkably quickly in the first month after birth, increasing their chance of developing obesity and associated disorders as adults.

Because they breathe more quickly and because the bacteria in their stomach are still developing, infants are more susceptible to the health risks associated with air pollution.

Needing More Studies

The authors stated that "early childhood is a key window where exposure to air pollution may have disproportionately detrimental health impacts."

Racial minorities and low-income groups are even more in danger, who frequently work, reside, and send their children to school near major roads or factories.

Communities of color are exposed to up to 1.5 times more airborne contaminants than their white counterparts, according to a 2018 Environmental Protection Agency research.

The authors advised more studies to see if and what specific effects of stomach alterations are during infancy.

More research is being done.

Related Article: Air Pollution Reportedly Causes Heart Attacks to Non-Smokers  

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