Perceived environmental pollution and subjective cognitive decline (SCD) or SCD-related functional difficulties among the general population

Association Between Perceived Noise Pollution and Sleep Quality: Findings from the 2018 Community Health Survey

OBJECTIVES

This study aimed to investigate the potential relationship between sleep quality and perceived noise.

METHODS

A cross-sectional study involving 185,246 adults (81,854 men and 103,392 women) participating in the 2018 Korea Community Health Survey (KCHS) was conducted. Subjective sleep quality was assessed using the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI), while perceived noise pollutants were categorized into two groups: perceived noise pollution (n = 43,638) and perceived non-noise pollution (n = 141,608). We used chi-square tests and independent sample t tests to compare differences between the perceived noise group and the non-perceived noise group, as well as multivariate logistic regression analysis to calculate adjusted odds ratios (OR) for sleep quality variables.

RESULTS

The perceived noise pollution group had significantly poor psychosocial variables (stress, depression assessed by Patient health questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9)) than the perceived non-noise pollution group. Poor sleep quality (PSQI > 5) was associated with perceived noise pollution (OR 1.33, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.30-1.36, P < 0.001). In addition, sleep quality (OR 1.09; 95% CI 1.06-1.13, P < 0.001); sleep latency (OR 1.11; 95% CI 1.09-1.14, P < 0.001); sleep duration (OR 1.10; 95% CI 1.07-1.13, P < 0.001); sleep efficiency (OR 1.20; 95% CI 1.16-1.25, P < 0.001); sleep disturbance (OR 1.46; 95% CI 1.42-1.51, P < 0.001); sleep medication use (OR 1.13; 95% CI 1.07-1.20, P = 0.002); and daytime dysfunction (OR 1.23; 95% CI 1.20-1.26, P < 0.001) were associated with perceived noise pollution after confounding variables.

CONCLUSION

Perceived noise pollution was significantly associated with poor sleep quality. Perceived noise annoyance could be used as a signal of health effects in the public community.

Gardening and subjective cognitive decline: a cross-sectional study and mediation analyses of 136,748 adults aged 45+ years

BACKGROUND

Given the benefits of gardening for physical and psychological health, we explored whether gardening was associated with lower risks of subjective cognitive decline (SCD), a precursor of dementia, and SCD-related functional limitations.

METHODS

Included in this cross-sectional study were 136,748 participants aged 45 + years old from the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System 2019 survey, who were then categorized into three groups according to self-reported exercise status: non-exercisers, gardeners, and other exercisers. SCD was assessed via a questionnaire, and SCD-related functional limitations were referred to as having difficulties in engaging in household or social activities due to SCD. The odds ratio (OR) and 95% confidence interval (CI) were calculated to assess the associations of gardening with SCD and SCD-related functional limitations, adjusted for age, sex, socioeconomic status, lifestyle factors, and health status. Mediation analyses were conducted to examine whether the observed association between gardening and SCD was mediated by energy expenditure (MET-hours/week), depression status, and consumption of fruits and vegetables.

RESULTS

Overall, 11.1% and 5.4% of participants self-reported experiencing SCD and SCD-related functional limitations, respectively. The adjusted OR for gardeners vs. non-exercisers, was 0.72 (95% CI 0.62-0.83) for SCD and 0.57 (95% CI 0.44-0.73) for SCD-related functional limitations. The observed association between gardening and SCD was explained by higher energy expenditure (39.0%), lower likelihood of having depression (21.5%), and higher consumption of fruits and vegetables (3.4%) (P<0.05 for all). Similar patterns were observed for SCD-related functional limitations.

CONCLUSION

In this nationally representative sample, gardening was associated with better cognitive status, which may be mainly attributed to better depression status and energy expenditure.

Diversity of Studies on Neighborhood Greenspace and Brain Health by Racialized/Ethnic Group and Geographic Region: A Rapid Review

Studies examining associations between greenspace and Alzheimer's disease and related dementia (ADRD) outcomes are rapidly on the rise, yet no known literature reviews have summarized the racialized/ethnic group and geographic variation of those published studies. This is a significant gap given the known disparities in both greenspace access and ADRD risk between racialized/ethnic groups and between developed versus developing countries. In this rapid literature review, we (1) describe the diversity of published greenspace-brain health studies with respect to racialized/ethnic groups and geographic regions; (2) determine the extent to which published studies have investigated racialized/ethnic group differences in associations; and (3) review methodological issues surrounding studies of racialized/ethnic group disparities in greenspace and brain health associations. Of the 57 papers meeting our inclusion criteria as of 4 March 2022, 21% (n = 12) explicitly identified and included individuals who were Black, Hispanic/Latinx, and/or Asian. Twenty-one percent of studies (n = 12) were conducted in developing countries (e.g., China, Dominican Republic, Mexico), and 7% (n = 4) examined racialized/ethnic group differences in greenspace-brain health associations. None of the studies were framed by health disparities, social/structural determinants of health, or related frameworks, despite the known differences in both greenspace availability/quality and dementia risk by racialized/ethnic group and geography. Studies are needed in developing countries and that directly investigate racialized/ethnic group disparities in greenspace-brain health associations to target and promote health equity.

Traffic costs of air pollution: the effect of PM2.5 on traffic violation

Although emerging studies have investigated the effect of air pollution on traffic crashes, it is unclear to scholars whether air pollution affects another road safety problem-traffic violations. To address this gap, the current paper constructs a data set from 1,390,221 traffic violation records of 640,971 drivers from the Wuhan Traffic Management Bureau between January 2018 and December 2018. An ordered logistic regression was conducted to verify our hypotheses. The result shows that PM_2.5 has no overall impact on the severity of traffic violations, but each 1% increase in the daily concentration of PM_2.5 leads to a 1.02-fold increase in the odds of serious inexperience-related violations and a 0.99-fold decrease in the odds of serious overconfidence-related violations. This effect is the strongest in PM_2.5, followed by NO₂, and has not been observed in CO and O₃. In addition, robustness tests indicate that the relationship between air pollution and traffic violations is consistent among the different subsets (e.g., clear weather, no rain and snow, and good visibility). We also provide valuable practical advice for drivers and traffic authorities.

Government Trust, Environmental Pollution Perception, and Environmental Governance Satisfaction

Environmental governance is related to the healthy living standard of human beings and the sustainable development of an economic society. It is of great significance to explore the influence of government trust and environmental pollution perception on environmental governance satisfaction to improve the performance of government environmental governance. Based on the CSS2019 survey data, 3872 survey samples were statistically analyzed, and the optimal scale regression model was used to analyze the relationship between government trust, environmental pollution perception, and environmental governance satisfaction. The results showed that 52.27% of the respondents believed that the satisfaction of environmental governance was good, and both government trust and environmental pollution perception had significant positive effects on the satisfaction of environmental governance. The trust level of the central government, district and county governments, and township governments shows a "differential government trust" state, which is pyramidal. However, the impact of government trust on environmental governance satisfaction shows an inverted pyramid structure, and the township government has the largest effect, which is not matched with the distribution of government trust level. The influence effect of air pollution perception is relatively large, and the public is sensitive to air pollution. Government trust has an impact on the satisfaction of environmental governance through the "expectation-response" path. People are close to the township government and have the opportunity to contact and interact with the township government and its staff. They can directly observe the governance performance and share the public goods of environmental governance. Therefore, it is necessary to further improve the trust level of township governments, strengthen the control of air pollution and improve the township government's environmental governance ability.

Noise pollution and human cognition: An updated systematic review and meta-analysis of recent evidence

BACKGROUND

This systematic review provides a comprehensive synthesis of recent epidemiological evidence that environmental noise negatively impacts human cognition.

METHODS

We update a prior review with recent publications (PROSPERO CRD42019151923). The strength of evidence for associations was assessed using the GRADE (Grading of Recommendations, Assessment, Development and Evaluations) framework. We also conducted random-effects meta-analyses where suitable.

RESULTS

16 studies were identified and reviewed in tandem with 32 studies previously reviewed by Clark & Paunovic (2018). A meta-analysis from 3 studies found that reading comprehension scores in quiet classrooms were 0.80 (95% confidence interval: 0.40; 1.20) points higher than children in noisier classrooms. Meta-analysis of the impact of 1 dB (dB) increase in environmental noise on reading and language abilities gave a pooled beta coefficient of -0.11(95% confidence interval: -0.32; 0.10). A meta-analysis of Odds Ratios (OR) from 3 studies found higher odds of cognitive impairment in people aged 45 + with higher residential noise exposure (OR 1.40, 95% CI: 1.18;1.61). After qualitative synthesis of remaining studies, there was high quality evidence for an association between environmental noise and cognitive impairment in middle-to-older adults, moderate quality evidence for an association between aircraft noise and reading and language in children, and moderate quality evidence against an association between aircraft noise and executive functioning in children. Generally the literature was supportive for other cognitive outcomes, but with low or very low-quality evidence.

DISCUSSION

The evidence so far suggests that noise exposure is associated with cognition, but more good quality research using standardised methodology is required to corroborate these results and to allow for precise risk estimation by larger meta-analyses. There is also a need for more research with older teenagers and young-to-middle aged adults, on the synergistic effects of noise and air pollution, and in Africa, Central and South America, South Asia and Australasia.

Adverse Childhood Experiences and Subjective Cognitive Decline in the US

OBJECTIVE

The aim of this study was to determine the association between adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and subjective cognitive decline (SCD) among a representative sample of the adult US population.

METHODS

Data were obtained from the 2019 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (N = 82,688, ≥45 years). Adverse childhood experiences included sexual, physical/psychological and environmental ACEs, and a score. Multivariable logistic regression was used to determine the association between ACEs and SCD, and SCD-related outcomes.

RESULTS

Sexual (adjusted OR (aOR: 2.83; 95% CI: 2.42-3.31)), physical/psychological (aOR: 2.05; 95% CI: 1.83-2.29), and environmental (aOR: 1.94; 95% CI: 1.74-2.16) ACEs were associated with SCD in the past year. There was also a dose-response relationship between ACE score and SCD.

CONCLUSION

ACEs were associated with SCD. Interventions to maximize cognitive health in aging and prevent future cognitive impairment should consider the potential role of ACEs among affected populations.