Czech-US study finds link between air pollution and bronchitis in children

A study released by Czech and US scientists says small children living in polluted areas face a higher risk of suffering from bronchitis than their peers living in a less polluted environment. The study published in the Environmental Health Perspectives journal blames the trend on polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, the product of burning, which are carried by fine dust particles in the air. Over a thousand children in the Czech Republic were tested in the late 1990s. The study concluded children between two and 4.5 years of age are 56 percent more likely to develop bronchitis.