Air pollution during pregnancy ‘can raise asthma risk in babies’

Babies born to mothers exposed to air pollution from traffic during pregnancy may be at a greater risk of developing asthma.

This is according to a new study from the University of British Columbia, which assessed more than 65,000 children in Vancouver, who were monitored from birth until the age of ten.

It was found that children whose mothers lived close to main roads during pregnancy had a 25 percent higher relative risk of developing asthma before the age of five, with the levels of nitrogen dioxide and carbon monoxide in traffic-related air pollution responsible for this.

In addition, it was shown that children born at low birth weight were more susceptible to the respiratory effects of air pollution, while those born to older mothers were at higher risk of being impacted by pollution exposure.

Lead author Hind Sbihi, a research associate at the University of British Columbia's School of Population and Public Health, said: "Air pollution from traffic sources increased the risk of developing asthma during early years before children reach school age, even in an urban area like Vancouver with relatively low levels of air pollution."