--- title: Dementia Cause: Air Pollution Near Roads Linked to Ailment description: People who live near a major road are more likely to develop dementia than those who live further away canonical: https://time.com/4623908/dementia-air-pollution/ author: Justin Worland article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2017-01-05T17:15:01.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-08-04T07:54:46.165Z article:section: Science og:title: Dementia Cause: Air Pollution Near Roads Linked to Ailment og:description: People who live near a major road are more likely to develop dementia than those who live further away og:url: https://time.com/4623908/dementia-air-pollution/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltd2a32556b1b692af/6988b47aab6d777ec46ac620/air-pollution-road-health.jpeg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 3000 og:image:height: 1688 og:image:alt: air pollution road health og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Dementia Cause: Air Pollution Near Roads Linked to Ailment twitter:description: People who live near a major road are more likely to develop dementia than those who live further away twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltd2a32556b1b692af/6988b47aab6d777ec46ac620/air-pollution-road-health.jpeg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Living Near Major Roads Linked to Dementia Risk, Study Says > Sponsored content. 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Future Proof is free at time.com/newsletters. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-futureproof-2026q3/newsletters?i=36e0e9a1-aa9d-4f05-a542-c2d20320ee4d&cr=time-nl-futureproof-2026q3-v1) ## Video: Alzheimer's Researcher Rudolph Tanzi on Why he's Optimistic [Watch (HLS stream): Alzheimer's Researcher Rudolph Tanzi on Why he's Optimistic](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/Ebl6dMCj.m3u8) (3:53)  _Published 2015-08-26. Tanzi is a pioneer in the field of Alzheimer's research, and has spent most of his career studying a disease that plagues 5.3 million Americans every year._  by [Justin Worland](https://time.com/author/justin-worland/)  ## Justin Worland Senior Correspondent Jan 5, 2017 5:15 PM UTC  Cyclists ride along a road in heavy smog on Dec. 31, 2016 in Beijing, China. Cyclists ride along a road in heavy smog on Dec. 31, 2016 in Beijing, China. Lintao Zhang—Getty Images  by [Justin Worland](https://time.com/author/justin-worland/)  ## Justin Worland Senior Correspondent Jan 5, 2017 5:15 PM UTC People who live near a major road are more likely to develop dementia than those who live further away, according to new [research](http://www.thelancet.com/journals/landia/article/PIIS0140-6736%2816%2932399-6/fulltext). The study, published in _The Lancet_ medical journal, found that people who live within 50 meters (164 feet) of a major roadway are 12% more likely to be diagnosed with dementia than their counterparts who live elsewhere. Researchers say that traffic exposure could be responsible for up to one in 10 cases of dementia among people who live near major roads. “Despite the growing impact of these diseases, little is known about their causes and prevention,” says study author Hong Chen of Public Health Ontario. “Busy roads could be a source of environmental stressors that could give rise to the onset of dementia.” **Read More:** [How Bad Air Came Back](http://time.com/4606048/how-bad-air-came-back/) Researchers behind the study tracked 6.6 million adults living in Canada between 2001 and 2012 using postal codes to determine their proximity to a major road. Two pollutants from vehicle exhaust—nitrogen dioxide and particulate matter—were connected to dementia but researchers say they do not account for the full effect. **Read More:** [Here’s How Much Arctic Sea Ice You Melt Each Year](http://time.com/4558782/arctic-sea-ice-melt-climate-change/) Air pollution has increased in severity in many parts of the world in recent years thanks to rapid economic growth and changes in fuel sources. The study is the latest in a slew of research to show the [devastating effect](http://time.com/4606048/how-bad-air-came-back/) air pollution can have on human health. Other studies have shown how smog can damage the functioning of the cardiovascular and respiratory systems and more recently harm developing fetuses. Several [initiatives](http://time.com/4354809/paris-air-pollution-car-ban/) across the globe have been launched in recent years to address the issue. ## Transcript When you realize you've found a new gene, or you've found a defect in a gene you've been searching for, there's this moment in time where there's this incredible amount of satisfaction. And then you go to bed, and you know that at least for that evening, you're the only person in the universe to have discovered this amazing thing. They might have the chance to help billions of people now and long after you're gone. So it's really, it's hard to describe a feeling like it. We were the first ones to find the disease gene using genetics, back in the early 80's. Our lab equipment catalog was basically Kmart. Because nobody sold anything yet we had to build it all. For my student thesis, I decided I wanted to build the first end to end map of a chromosome. It was the first time that was gonna be possible. And I'd been working on that gene and other genes like it ever since trying to come up with novel therapies for the disease. I have Alzheimer's disease. Early onset. I got to talk a little bit to Julianne Moore, who was a Time 100 honoree at the gala. And I told her, I said, the mutation you had in the movie, I discovered. That was the gene mutation you had in the movie was actually discovered by our lab. [ MUSIC ] Between 1906 and 1986, We had no idea what caused the pathology. So people would look in the brains of patients after they died; See the plaques, the tangles, the evidence, the information and then have to guess what happened to this brain. And it was the equivalent really of aliens coming down from space and they want to understand the game of football and say" Well, wow what happened here "? They see some grass dug up and... Crumbled up sheet of paper where they get a little bit more evidence of what happened. There's no footballs in sight. There are no players in sight. For decades, that was the equivalent of how we were trying to figure out Alzheimer's. Then in the late 80s when we and others found the first Alzheimer's genes, now we had the real physical targets. We said, this is what's going on. Here's the gene that makes the amyloid. Here are the mutations that make everything go wrong. And so now for the first time, we had hard evidence from genes and proteins that said exactly what was happening before the pathology. [ MUSIC ] Alzheimer's disease affects 50 % of people over 85. Life span right now is 80. If we don't throw more money into this disease, There's a 50 % chance you're gonna get this disease in your lifetime cuz you're probably gonna reach 85. We know so much about this disease. We now know of 2 or 3 dozen different genes beyond the first 4 we found in the 80s and 90s that cause this disease or are predisposed to it. But the funding is what limits how much we can do. We have enough funding to do about five percent of our to- do list of equally important tasks. You look at cancer, AIDs, heart disease. They get twelve billion, ten billion, eight billion. six billion dollars from the government and you see in the incidents of these diseases all go down as a result. Alzheimer's last year got a half a billion Yeah. I always teach my students and trainees, think about what science is going like 50 or 100 years from now and make it your goal to come up with something that lasts 50 years and doesn't go away. Your role as a scientist when you go into the lab is not to prove it but to disprove it. If you go in the lab, And try to crush your hypothesis, kill it, and then see what little thread survives. And then use that to come up with the next idea. Over your lifetime, you're gonna build a little tapestry. If it hangs on in 50 years from now, it's still part of the [ UNKNOWN ] tapestry, you've done more than most. 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