Posted: 26 October 2005 at 9:50am | IP Logged

Early Exposure to Combustion Gases Could Predispose Children to Cancer

While they're pregnant, women are advised to avoid alcohol, tobacco smoke, drugs, and caffeine to prevent their unborn children from being exposed to harmful chemicals and toxins. But just breathing polluted air could put your baby or young child at increased risk for childhood cancer, according to recent research from the University of Birmingham in the United Kingdom.

In 2001, the study researcher linked areas of Great Britain where chemical emissions were high (called hotspots) to the addresses of 12,018 children born between 1955 and 1980 who died of leukemia, lymphoma, or solid tumors before their 16th birthdays. Most of the emissions noted in the study, such as carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides, benzene, and 1,3-butadiene, were generated from engine exhausts, especially diesel exhausts.

The results? Children exposed to emissions hotspots - during the prenatal period or after birth - or industrial sites such as bus and train stations, highways, and factories had a higher risk of developing cancer in childhood. And children who were exposed to hotspot emissions and who lived near industrial sites had an even greater risk of developing cancer. For example, a child exposed to both the chemical 1,3-butadiene and living near a bus station had more than 12 times the risk of developing childhood cancer.

What This Means to You: The results of this study suggest that 1,3-butadiene, a chemical made from the processing of petroleum, may be one of the most dangerous atmospheric emissions. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, breathing 1,3-butadiene during pregnancy can increase the risk of birth defects and it's a known cancer-causing agent.

If your workplace exposes you to 1,3-butadiene, carbon monoxide, benzene, or other dangerous pollutants or if you live near industrial sites or areas with high levels of emissions (like bus stations or highways), talk to your doctor about reducing your child's risk of toxicity.

Source: E. G. Knox; Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health, September 2005

Reviewed by: Steven Dowshen, MD
Date reviewed: October 2005