We all know that our children and grandchildren will live longer and healthier lives than us. Or so the pattern has gone for the last hundred years or more. In 1920, the life expectancy of a US citizen was around 54 years. By 1970 that had increased to just over 70 years. For the next 50 years, life expectancy climbed steadily, peaking at 78.8. But then the COVID pandemic triggered a significant drop down to 76.3. Most people assume this is a temporary blip in the data. And that life expectancy will recover and continue to climb. But there is a difference between living for a long time, and remaining healthy. Here, we explore how environmental pollutants may be creating a ticking time bomb that threatens both our longevity and long-term health.
Toxic environmental pollution
Environmental activists have made pollution into a political football. But it really should be a bipartisan issue. All across the US we see reduced air quality, groundwater pollution, and the legacy of decades of weak legislation and regulation. The now infamous Camp Lejeune case highlighted how pollution is directly linked with poor health outcomes. But that was sadly not an isolated incident. For this article, we will focus on groundwater contamination and air pollution since these affect the greatest share of the population.
Water pollution
A huge variety of toxic chemicals make their way into groundwater. Many of these toxins end up in our food and drinking water. Here are just a few examples.
Heavy metals. Over recent years there have been many documented cases of heavy metal pollution in groundwater. Heavy metals are linked with a wide range of health problems, including nervous system disorders, kidney dysfunction, immune system problems, and some cancers.
Organic compounds. Many industries including dry cleaning and semiconductor manufacturing rely on toxic organic solvents. Some of these, such as trichloroethylene (TCE) and perchloroethylene (PCE) are commonly found in polluted groundwater. Other organic compounds, such as benzene, are also frequently found in groundwater. These cause a wide range of chronic health conditions including cancers, Parkinson’s disease, and liver damage.
PFAS compounds. PFAS, standing for per- and poly-fluoroalkyl substances, are a class of man-made compounds that have been linked with serious health problems. They have been found in water sources across the US, including the entire Great Lakes catchment area. Over 2,000 municipal water sources in the US have meaningful levels of PFAS. PFAS have been found to cause a wide range of issues including cancer, immune system problems, birth and development defects, and ulcerative colitis to name just a few.
Air pollution
Air pollution is another major source of exposure to toxins. This includes smog, industrial emissions, and smoke from wildland fires.
Smog
Anyone who has lived in a big city is familiar with the idea of smog. Smog was originally a portmanteau of smoke and fog. It was coined to describe the extremely thick and toxic pollution that plagues big cities during the era of coal-fired heating. However, smog has become a much broader term which includes any particulate air pollutants that are created by combustion. Nowadays, that mostly means automobile and truck exhaust.
Particulates
Particulates are usually emitted by burning, including diesel engines, wildland fires, and power plants. Particulate pollution is measured according to the maximum particle size present. You may have seen terms like PM2.5 or PM10. The PM here refers to particulate matter. The number is the particle size in micrometers. So, PM2.5 means particles that are smaller than 2.5 micrometers, meaning they can be readily inhaled. For context, a typical human hair is 75 micrometers. That means PM2.5 particles are 30 times smaller than a typical hair.
Health impacts of air pollution
According to the American Lung Association, air pollution causes a whole load of different health conditions. These include:
- Cancer, including lung, kidney, bone, stomach
- Harm to the nervous system and brain
- Birth defects
- Irritation to the eyes, nose and throat
- Coughing and wheezing
- Impaired lung function
- Harm to the cardiovascular system
- Reduced fertility
That’s quite a scary list!
Recent research also found that living within 3 miles of a major airport or its flight path has significant long-term health impact due to so-called ultra-fine particulate matter. That is particles smaller than 100 nanometers (in other words, 25 times smaller than PM2.5. The authors of the paper said “A total of 280,000 cases of high blood pressure, 330,000 cases of diabetes, and 18,000 cases of dementia may be linked to UFP [ultrafine particle] emissions among the 51.5 million people living around the 32 busiest airports in Europe.”
Limiting the impact of pollution on longevity
All the pollutants mentioned above cause a plethora of adverse health issues. Many of these are chronic and may take years to develop fully. In some cases, like PFAS, the toxins bioaccumulate, meaning they build up in the body and are only slowly eliminated. Clearly, this has two key implications for longevity. Firstly and most obviously, many of the health conditions are life-limiting and ultimately lead to premature death. Secondly, even if they don’t kill you prematurely, any chronic condition is going to seriously limit your ability to enjoy life to the fullest. So, what can you do about it?
Measure everything
Before you do anything you should try to understand how bad the problem really is. This means measuring the pollution in your drinking water, monitoring the air quality near your house, and even taking blood tests. For instance, you can buy water testing kits online to monitor the pollution in your drinking water. Relentless Health can sell you at-home blood tests for commonly-occuring PFAS compounds. And you can access online maps to get real-time air quality measurements.
Remove or reduce the pollution
The next step is to remove or reduce the pollution. This includes installing HEPA air filters in your house. Or fitting high-efficiency reverse osmosis water filters. And avoiding sources of pollution like downtown traffic or wildfires. Some people even go so far as to wear respirator masks to avoid air pollution. But there’s only so much most people can do before it starts to impact their lives. Other approaches are to actively seek to remove the toxins from your body. For example, researchers have shown that blood or plasma donations can reduce the level of PFAS in your blood.
Monitor over time
The final step is to monitor the impact of any changes over time. This means getting regular health checks for issues related to any pollutants you are exposed to. It also means testing yourself and your environment regularly to see how things are changing. For example, while many PFAS can take years to eliminate from the body, others take just days or months. So, we would typically recommend most people get tested twice a year.
Conclusions
Ever since the industrial revolution, pollution has been a fact of life. For decades, the real health impacts of pollution were masked by the improvements in overall health. Think antibiotics, vaccines, and modern diagnostics. Legislation to clean up industry helped reduce the more obvious effects of pollution. For instance, London no longer gets its “pea souper” fogs made famous by Dickens and Sherlock Holmes. However, pollution has become more insidious. Modern industrial processes produce ever more exotic chemicals, often without any thought for their long term health implications. But hopefully the pendulum will begin to swing the other way.
Disclaimer: This article is for educational and informational purposes only. Nothing in this article or on the web site represents medical advice or an offer of medical, diagnostic, or treatment products or services. Anyone concerned about their health should consult a licensed medical professional.
