Even short-term exposure to air pollution impacts our brain performance and capacity to work, according to researchers from The University of Queensland and Carnegie Mellon University.
Even short-term exposure to air pollution impacts our brain performance and capacity to work, according to researchers from The University of Queensland and Carnegie Mellon University.
Dr Andrea La Nauze from UQ’s School of Economics said a data study indicated that air pollution damaged cognitive function in working-age adults.
“Our research used data from Lumosity brain training games to investigate the impact of air pollution on adults living in the United States,” Dr La Nauze said.
“The games we studied targeted seven cognitive functions: memory, verbal ability, attention, flexibility, maths ability, speed and problem-solving.
“We found that exposure to moderately high levels of fine particulate matter (PM2.5) caused a player to drop by almost six points in a 100-point scale where 100 represents the score of the top one per cent of cognitive performers.
“In fact, if you’re under 30 years old and you’re exposed to this level of pollution, your cognitive function declines by the same amount as ageing by 15 years."
Read more at: University of Queensland
