SoylentNews

taylorvich [soylentnews.org] writes:

https://newatlas.com/medical/traffic-triggers-blood-pressure-surge/ [newatlas.com]

Inching forward bumper to bumper on a highway when you’re on the way to an appointment, or worse, the airport, is enough to spike anyone’s blood pressure (BP). But researchers have found that a BP surge occurs independent of external stressors, and it could be due to the poor air flowing into the car from surrounding traffic.

The University of Washington (UW) researchers undertook a randomized crossover trial and were surprised to see that sitting in traffic and breathing unfiltered air was linked to a 4.5 mm Hg surge in blood pressure, which peaked at around 60 minutes of exposure but lingered for up to 24 hours following the event.

"The body has a complex set of systems to try to keep blood pressure to your brain the same all the time," said lead researcher Joel Kaufman, a physician and professor at UW. "It’s a very complex, tightly regulated system, and it appears that somewhere, in one of those mechanisms, traffic-related air pollution interferes with blood pressure."

In the study, 16 participants aged 22-45 years were driven as passengers through peak-hour traffic in Seattle for periods across three days, to measure the impact of traffic pollution on blood pressure. For two days, the air flowed into the vehicle normally, to mirror how most of us drive, and on another day the car was fitted with a high efficiency particulate air (HEPA) filter, which blocked 86% of particulate pollution.

Blood pressure readings were taken a day before, during and after the drive, with 14 three-minute tests collected. Image-based central retinal arteriolar equivalents (CRAEs) were also measured before and after. Brachial artery diameter and gene expression were also taken.

The mean adjusted systolic blood pressure reading of 4.5 mm Hg higher than baseline is comparable to the effect of a high-sodium diet.

Original Submission