New dementia study blames traffic for increased risk
Can gardening prevent dementia? It’s a pressing question for anyone living near a main road, as research has found that people living near busy streets have higher rates of the condition.
The Canadian study was published in The Lancet. It followed nearly two million people in Ontario over 11 years As many as 11 per cent of dementia cases in people living within 50m of a major road could be down to traffic. Researchers say air pollution or noisy traffic could be contributing to the brain’s decline. However – and I’m no medical expert – if these findings have any basis in fact, maybe gardening could help. We’re all familiar with ‘open plan’ front gardens, often with planning restrictions preventing hedges or fences over one metre or so.
Can gardening prevent dementia – cutting noise and pollution
A decent, tall hedge cuts down on both air pollution and traffic noise – I know this, as I live on a busy road. My double-thickness beech and hawthorn hedge significantly cuts noise, and the plants are pollution-resistant. Really tough evergreens, such as laurel and conifer, do an even better job of forming a ‘buffer zone’ between your garden and the outside world.
Trees and shrubs can remove both gaseous and tiny particles of air pollution temporarily. They absorb them or they ‘stick to’ the plant’s surface, washed off by rain, or lost at leaf fall. Obviously, in areas of very heavy traffic, plant health will suffer too. What most people don’t realise is that indoor air pollution is usually worse than outdoors. It has up to five times more particles, especially in homes with poor ventilation and no house plants.
Dementia cases diagnosed
In the study, carried out between 2001 and 2012, there were 243,611 cases of dementia diagnosed. Compared with those living 300m away from a major road, the risk was:
- 7 per cent higher within 50m
- 4 per cent higher between 50-100m
- 2 per cent higher between 101-200m
- The analysis suggests 7-11 per cent of dementia cases within 50m of a major road could be caused by traffic.
The researchers adjusted the data to account for other risk factors like poverty, obesity, education levels and smoking. Doctors’ advice on reducing the risk of dementia is to stop smoking, exercise and eat healthily; gardening helps with the last two. All you need to do now is get planting – what are you waiting for?
Read more advice at www.dementiauk.org.
