The higher a mother’s exposure to particulate air pollution during pregnancy, the lower her baby’s heart variability will be in response to stress at 6 months of age. That was the novel conclusion of a study published in the October issue of Environmental Health Perspectives, led by Rosalind J. Wright, MD, MPH, Dean for Translational Biomedical Research.
The study is believed to be the first of its kind in suggesting that environmentally induced changes in the mother may translate to the intrauterine environment.
In adults, decreased heart variability is a known risk factor for cardiovascular disease; chronic diseases such as diabetes, hypertension, and obesity; and mental health problems, including depression and anxiety disorders.
Critical components of the autonomic nervous system develop and mature during gestation. Variability in how the heart rate responds to stressful experiences is essential for maintaining optimal functioning in humans. The researchers studied 237 Boston-based mothers and their infants and used satellite data and air pollution monitors to determine the levels of the mothers’ exposure during pregnancy.
“These findings, in combination with increasing worldwide exposure to particulate air pollution, highlight the importance of examining early life exposure to air pollution in relation to negative medical, developmental, and psychological outcomes,” says Dr. Wright, Co-Director of the Institute for Exposomic Research at Mount Sinai, who also holds the Horace W. Goldsmith Professorship in Children’s Health Research, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai.
“A critical step in identifying children at risk for costly chronic disorders is identifying exposures that lead to early vulnerability.”