Living near busy roads increases the risk of dementia, says a new study

Living close to a busy road increases the risk of Alzheimer’s and other forms of dementia by up to 12%, a major study has found. Scientists in Canada found a clear trend after tracking the progress of more than six million adults for 11 years. People living within 50m of heavy traffic had a 7% higher risk of developing dementia compared with those whose homes were more than 300m away.

Increasing population growth and urbanisation has placed many people close to heavy traffic, and with widespread exposure to traffic and growing rates of dementia, even a modest effect from near-road exposure could pose a large public health burden.

Dr Hong Chen, from Public Health Ontario

Lead scientist Dr Hong Chen, from Public Health Ontario, said: “With our widespread exposure to traffic and the greater tendency for people to live in cities these days, this has serious public health implications. "Increasing population growth and urbanisation has placed many people close to heavy traffic, and with widespread exposure to traffic and growing rates of dementia, even a modest effect from near-road exposure could pose a large public health burden.” The study, published in The Lancet medical journal, monitored the progress of every adult aged between 20 and 85 living in Ontario from 2001 to 2012. In total, around 6.6 million people took part in the research.

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