Air pollution has been associated with long-term health conditions, including the risk of cardiovascular disease, asthma, lung cancer and death. Breathing in polluted air from highway traffic could raise the blood pressure of passengers for up to 24 hours, a new study has revealed.
The team from the University of Washington, who evaluated the health risks of passengers traveling on busy highways, found that pollution from heavy traffic resulted in an increase in blood pressure equivalent to the effect of a high-sodium diet. The study was published in the Annals of Internal Medicine.
