Pollution

Environmental exposures, from air and ocean pollution to climate change and urbanization, have profound and far-reaching effects on human health and well-being. This hub brings together authoritative, evidence-based articles that examine the health risks associated with pollution, microplastics, toxicants, and environmental changes, alongside practical strategies for risk reduction and public health protection. Explore how environmental hazards influence conditions such as asthma, neurological health, pregnancy outcomes, and skin health, and discover the vital connections between planetary health and individual well-being. These resources support informed decision-making for clinicians, policymakers, and the public alike.

Bacterial Risks at Beaches and Evidence-Based Safety Strategies

Beaches face escalating risks from microbial contamination due to climate change and human activity, increasing the burden of waterborne illnesses for swimmers. Integrating advanced monitoring technologies, improved public education, and policy reforms is essential for protecting beachgoers’ health.

Pollution and Mental Health

Can Weather or Air Pollution Trigger Migraine?

How has COVID-19 Influenced Pollution?

AAM - Air pollution and Alzheimer's

Autism and Particulate Air Matter

Environmental Health Hazards: An Overview

What Impact does Climate Change have on Our Health?

The Effect of Climate Change on Asthma

Ocean Pollution and Human Health

How Air Pollution Impacts Brain Health

Environmental Hazards in Pregnancy

See more featured articles »

Air Pollution and Lung Health

What are the Health Effects of Exhaust Emissions?

What is Planetary Health?

How do Microplastics Affect Our Health?

How Does the Health of Our Planet Affect Our Own Health?

Anti-Pollution Skincare: Protecting Skin in Urban Environments

Healthcare During The Climate Crisis

5 Easy Ways to Reduce Your Microplastic Intake

What are the Health Effects of Exhaust Emissions?

Urbanization and Human Health

Health Effects of Artificial Light

How PFAS Are Impacting Human Health

The Role of Toxicology in Wildlife Conservation

Pollution and Mental Health

How Composting Protects Public Health and Our Planet

Air Pollution and Eye Health

Pollution and Alzheimer's

Latest Pollution News and Research

Researchers call for coordinated action to protect European sleep health

A new paper from the Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Committee and the Early Career Network of the European Sleep Research Society warns that sleep health is becoming a growing public health challenge across Europe and is calling for coordinated action to protect it.

21 Oct 2026

$52 million study to investigate why some infants develop lasting lung infections

A Michigan Medicine-led research consortium has secured approval for up to $52 million in federal funding to launch a multicenter study examining why some young children recover fully from viral lower respiratory tract infections while others develop severe illness or lasting problems such as asthma.

20 Oct 2026

Residential greenery linked to lower dementia risk in older adults

Urban residents with more greenery within 100 meters of their homes have a lower risk of developing dementia over time.

19 Oct 2026

Highly sensitive people react to social cues over physical environments

Environmental sensitivity may be a misleading name for a personality trait that appears to have less to do with how people respond to their physical environments and more to do with how they are affected by social experiences and perceived threats.

15 Oct 2026

A study of 2.3 million California children raises questions about lithium in water

Researchers analyzed healthcare records from more than 2.3 million children in California and found that those living in counties with higher lithium concentrations in water sources had 60% higher adjusted odds of a Wolff-Parkinson-White (WPW) diagnosis. A separate New York analysis supported an association at a lower lithium threshol

14 Oct 2026

Aged aircraft exhaust poses a rising threat to human health

Fine particulate matter consists of tiny particles with diameters in the nanometer range. They are produced, for example, by fuel combustion, remain suspended in the air and can penetrate deep into the respiratory tract.

14 Oct 2026

Improving healthcare sustainability through carbon data

Healthcare sustainability data can identify emissions hotspots and improve operational decision-making across healthcare and life sciences.

From Nocomed 14 Oct 2026

Lancet Commission identifies seventeen catastrophic threats to global health

Global experts warn that today's decisions across health, finance, climate, defense and security sectors will determine how many years of good health future generations gain - or lose - to preventable illness and early death by 2100.

12 Oct 2026

New research links water source type to antibiotic resistance

Aquatic environments are recognized as reservoirs and pathways for antimicrobial resistance, receiving antibiotic residues and resistant microorganisms from sewage, livestock farming, and aquaculture.

12 Oct 2026

Walking remains highly beneficial for COPD patients in polluted environments

Regular walking reduces symptom flare ups for people with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, even if they live in an area with poor air quality, according to a study published in ERJ Open Research.

5 Oct 2026

EU project calls for strict regulations to stop forever chemicals

Chemical pollution from so-called "forever chemicals" poses major challenges to human health and the environment. For five years, an EU funded research and innovation project has investigated the scale of the problem and possible solutions for persistent, mobile and toxic chemicals, including PFAS.

1 Oct 2026

Cognitive tests may not tell the whole story about memory concerns

This study highlights the link between blood biomarkers and dementia risk in subjective cognitive decline, emphasizing prevention and lifestyle changes.

1 Oct 2026

Living environments and lifestyle factors may contribute to faster adult biological aging

Researchers from the Faculty of Sport and Health Sciences at the University of Jyväskylä, Finland, found that biological aging may accelerate already in early adulthood.

30 Sep 2026

ACLM position statement links lifestyle medicine to planetary health

The American College of Lifestyle Medicine (ACLM) has released a new position statement asserting that lifestyle medicine offers a practical, evidence-based framework to address both the chronic disease epidemic and the growing environmental challenges affecting health worldwide.

29 Sep 2026

Canadian study links neighborhood poverty levels to type 2 diabetes risk

The area in which someone lives strongly influences their risk of developing type 2 diabetes, new research from Canada being presented at the annual meeting of the European Association for the Study of Diabetes (EASD) in Milan, Italy (Sept 28 – Oct 2) suggests.

29 Sep 2026

What links smoking, body fat, mental health, genes, and heart risk? Inflammation may be part of the answer

In a large UK Biobank study, higher levels of the chronic inflammation marker GlycA were associated with smaller heart chambers, thicker heart walls, impaired diastolic function, reduced stroke volume, and a 43% higher risk of major adverse cardiovascular events in the highest versus lowest GlycA group. Genetic susceptibility also modified the associations between environmental exposures, inflammation, and cardiovascular risk, while inflammatory proteins in the IL-1, TNF, and IL-6 pathways statistically mediated several of these associations.

23 Sep 2026

Planetary crisis heightens global inequality of health opportunities

The worldwide inequality of health opportunities is being further heightened by the triple planetary crisis - climate change, loss of biodiversity and environmental pollution.

22 Sep 2026

Polystyrene nanoplastics may threaten reproductive health and offspring development

Plastic pollution is increasingly being recognized as more than an environmental problem. Tiny plastic particles can enter living organisms, circulate through biological systems, and potentially reach reproductive tissues.

21 Sep 2026

New international standard creates unified health data across Europe

Every breath we take contains tiny particles that are invisible to the naked eye and can harm our health. Air pollution alone contributes to heart disease, stroke, lung cancer, and other chronic illnesses.

21 Sep 2026

Wildfire smoke may be more harmful than other air pollution, two Mount Sinai studies find

As climate change drives more frequent and intense wildfires, researchers at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai have published two large-scale studies showing that wildfire smoke may pose greater health risks than other sources of air pollution, with higher risks of hospitalization for cardiovascular and respiratory disease and poorer survival among patients with lung cancer.

18 Sep 2026