STUDY DISCOVERS THAT LINING CLOSE TO AN EXPRESSWAY INCREASES THE RISK OF DEMENTIA

By Meera Senthilingam
Living close to a major roadway could increase your likelihood of developing dementia, according to a new study.
Researchers found that people living within 50 meters (164 feet) of such a road had a 7% greater risk of developing dementia.

The level of risk decreases proportionally, they say, with a 4% higher risk among people living 50 to 100 meters (328 feet) away and a 2% higher risk among people living 101 to 200 meters (656 feet, or about a 10th of a mile) away.

People living more than 200 meters from a major road weren't seen to have any increase in risk, according to the study, published Wednesday in the Lancet.

"There is a gradient of increased risk as you get closer to major roadways," said Ray Copes, chief of environmental and occupational health at Public Health Ontario, who co-led the study. "By the time you're 200 meters away, the risk is essentially down to baseline."

In the study, a road was defined as "major" based on daily traffic volume and was the equivalent of an interstate highway in the United States.

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