Air Pollution and Dementia Risk in the U.S.

Air pollution may affect cognitive health. Taking U.S. population-representative data from the Health and Retirement Study, researchers analyzed whether fine particulate matter (PM_2.5) was associated with dementia risk in participants older than 50 years and without dementia at baseline. Fine particulate matter exposure at participants' residential addresses was based on a spatiotemporal model that incorporated Environmental Protection Agency network measurements and geographic covariates. PM_2.5 emission sources included those from agriculture, road traffic, nonroad traffic, coal combustion for energy production and industry, other industries, wildfires, and windblown dust. Incident dementia was determined by a validated algorithm using par…