If you eat a steady diet of cheeseburgers, butter, fried chicken, milkshakes, and bacon, you’re probably increasing your risk of cardiovascular disease. It’s common knowledge; bad diet equals heart problems.
But where you live might be a factor too.
According to a new study in the journal Epidemiology, researchers say middle-aged and older adults who live near busy roads may have a higher risk of dying from heart disease.
The culprit is air pollution.
Motor vehicles release toxins such as carbon monoxide, sulfur dioxide, chlorofluorocarbons, and nitrogen oxides.
For the study, scientists gathered data on more than 450,000 Vancouver, Canada residents between the ages of 45 and 88, and people who lived within 500 feet of a highway or within 165 feet of a major road were more likely to die of heart disease, compared to residents living farther away.
The researchers presented air pollution data to show that people living close to highways are exposed to higher levels of particulate matter, nitrogen dioxide, and other pollutants associated with traffic.
So the scientists are encouraging people to consider air pollution, along with diet, exercise, and smoking habits, as a risk factor for heart disease.
In 2008, a study found open-air poultry trucks traveling down the road leave a trail of bacteria, including bacteria resistant to antibiotics.
Image credit: Corey Leopold
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