According to researchers from the University of Manitoba in Winnipeg, Canada, the impact of exposure to diesel exhaust or air pollution impacts women more negatively than men.
For the study, Dr Hemshekhar Mahadevappa and Professor Neeloffer Mookherjee observed how breathing in diesel exhaust impacted people’s blood. They found that while both men and women showed components related to inflammation, infection and cardiovascular disease, the impact was more on women.
“We already know that there are sex differences in lung diseases such as asthma and respiratory infections. Our previous research showed that breathing diesel exhaust creates inflammation in the lungs and has an impact on how the body deals with respiratory infections,” said Mahadevappa.
For the study, the researchers observed five female and five male volunteers, who were non-smokers. Each volunteer spent four hours each breathing clean filtered air and diesel exhaust-filled air. The diesel exhaust fumes were at three different levels of concentration, with a month’s break between each level.
24 hours post each exposure, volunteers donated blood samples and the researchers examined their plasma. Plasma is a component of blood that carries blood cells as well as proteins around the body.
The researchers found that there was a significant difference in the level of 90 proteins—some of which are related to inflammation, infection and cardiovascular issues—between men and women, the latter’s being higher.
“These are preliminary findings, however, they show that exposure to diesel exhaust has different effects in female bodies compared to male and that could indicate that air pollution is more dangerous for females than males,” said Mookherjee.
The study is crucial for the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of respiratory diseases. Since more women than men are affected by asthma, it will help in gaining a better understanding of how and why air pollution affects us the way it does.