Inhaling Car Exhaust Will Make You Loony

Image via rodale.com

I consider myself an avid cyclist, which is also a good excuse for my admitted bike fetish (I currently own three). Living in a large American city such as Chicago, the use of a bike as one's primary mode of transportation has its benefits as well as its annoyances. I can hop on my mountain bike and cruise side streets all day long without having to deal with much traffic. The city is becoming more and more bike-friendly (especially under the new Rahmbo regime), with designated bike lanes popping up for long stretches along major thoroughfares.

The major downside to cycling in the city (IMHO), is having to constantly inhale the toxic exhaust belched out by automobile traffic (and God forbid you get stuck behind the dreaded CTA or school bus). It's quite obvious to even the dimmest bulb that inhaling carbon monoxide is bad for your lungs, and therefore, your overall health.

Now a new study by a local scientist shows just how the inhalation of such airborne pollutants can affect the human body. The study was conducted by Jennifer Weuve, an epidemiologist and professor at Rush University's Institue for Healthy Aging, and published in the Archives of Internal Medicine. It concludes that particulate pollution, or the tiny particles and droplets emitted by smokestacks and automobile tailpipes, not only contributes to lung disease but also cognitive deterioration. Weuve notes that each additional unit of exposure to particulate pollution seems to age a person's brain an extra two years.

It's unclear exactly how this can happen, though it may have to do with increased rates of cardiovascular disease or tiny particles of particulate pollution passing from the bloodstream directly to the brain. The study was based on a sample of over 19,000 nurses in the US. Specific geographical information is not clear, nor does the study focus at all on cyclists (cycling nurses?). But the conclusion is clear, heightened exposure to particulate pollution can lead to dementia, in addition to lung and cardiovascular disease.

Studies like these are why I favor sticking mostly to residential streets when I ride, as they are (usually) far less congested, and thus limit my direct exposure to particulate pollution (though it's still city air, so it has a higher concentration of particulate pollution, regardless). Many urban cyclists swear by the city's commercial avenues due to the aforementioned bike lanes and the more direct routes they provide between destinations. But I plan on adhering to my side street routine for the most part, to cut down on exposure to car exhaust, and to avoid getting pancaked by a CTA bus.