Air pollution affects fetal development

Pregnant women exposed to air pollution like car exhaust, heating, etc. can see the development of their babies affected.

According to a study published in Environmental Health Perspectives, air pollution harms the fetus after the second trimester of pregnancy. It can lead to low birth weight and affect the circumference of the baby’s head.

For this study, researchers followed 280 pregnant women until the birth of their child. From the middle of their pregnancy, women wore a device to measure the level of benzene in ambient air. This device provided results that show air pollution does affect the fetus.

However, scientists do not yet know the mechanism that causes an infant’s development to be impaired because of pollution. Further research is needed. For now, they hypothesize that it disrupts the mother’s cardiovascular functions which would restrict the exchanges between mother and baby.