Living Near Major Roads Linked to Risk of Dementia, Parkinson's, Alzheimer's, and MS

A study in Environmental Health implies that people who live near major roads are at a higher risk of developing dementia, Parkinson's disease, Alzheimer's disease, and multiple sclerosis, reports ScienceDaily . The researchers reviewed data for 678,000 adults between the ages of 45 and 84 in Metro Vancouver. They found an association between living less than 50 meters from a major road or less than 150 meters from a highway, and a higher risk of developing these neurological diseases — likely because of greater concentrations of air pollution. Meanwhile, living near parks or other green spaces can shield against these disorders. "Our findings do suggest that urban planning efforts to increase accessibility to green spaces and to reduce motor vehicle traffic would be beneficial for neurological health," said the University of British Columbia's (UBC) Weiran Yuchi. UBC Professor Michael Brauer added that "for people who are exposed to a higher level of green space, they are more likely to be physically active and may also have more social interactions. There may even be benefits from just the visual aspects of vegetation."