This week, Australia sweltered through its hottest day on record. Ever. On Tuesday the average national temperature hit 40.9C, and with a lot of the country still burning, the air quality is pretty crap. So crap in fact, that in some parts of the country, it’s been 11 times higher than the official hazardous level. Turns out that not only is the air pollution making us cough, it’s also giving us depression.
A systematic review of global data has found that people living in areas with air pollution experience higher rates of depression and suicide compared to people living in clean air environments.
The World Health Organisation has called air pollution “the new tobacco” and “a silent public health emergency,” and for good reason. One third of deaths from stroke, lung cancer and heart disease are due to air pollution, meaning that living in a polluted place is about as bad for you as smoking.
Isobel Braithwaite was the leader of the research, and says that about 15% of depression cases could be prevented with clean air.
“We know that the finest particulates from dirty air can reach the brain via both the bloodstream and the nose, and that air pollution has been implicated in increased [brain] inflammation, damage to nerve cells and to changes in stress hormone production, which have been linked to poor mental health,” she said.
So what to do? The EU has a legal limit of air pollution, and that’s been working really well for them. The research shows that cutting down air pollution globally to the EU’s legal limit could prevent millions of people becoming depressed.
Here in Australia, we might have to wait for the fires to be put out before we start working on better air quality. We probably shouldn’t hold our breath on any amazing leadership on the matter, though. Maybe we should all just jet off to Hawai’i.
If you, or anyone you know, is struggling with mental health issues, contact Lifeline on 13 11 14 or Beyond Blue on 1300 22 4636.