Traffic pollution may make teenagers go off the rails

TRAFFIC pollution may be fuelling teenage criminality, after researchers claimed a link between exposure to higher levels of sooty particles from vehicle exhausts and lawless behaviour.

The study tracked 682 children in Los Angeles from the age of nine until 18, while their parents completed a “rule-breaking” checklist including lying and cheating, truancy, stealing, vandalism, arson and substance abuse.

At the same time, air quality monitors were used to estimate concentrations of tiny toxic particles called PM2.5S outside each family’s home. Three quarters of the children were found to be breathing in levels of the particles that exceeded the US government safety limit of 12mg per cubic metre of air. Dr Diana Younan, from the University of Southern California’s Keck School of Medicine, said: “These tiny, toxic particles creep into your body, affecting your lungs and your heart. PM2.5 is particularly harmful to developing brains because it can damage structure and neural networks and, as our study suggests, influence adolescent behaviour.”

More delinquent behaviour was seen in children from poorer socioeconomic backgrounds and who had little access to city parks. The researchers noted the fact that poorer members of the community were the most likely to be exposed to harmful air pollution.

The study, published in the Journal of Abnormal Psychology, identified higher PM2.5 pollution levels near ma- jor roads and in neighbourhoods with limited green space and few trees.