Diabetes is considered a lifestyle disease. The kind of food we eat, our health habits, and medical history are said to be the culprits behind this condition. However, a recent study claimed that diabetes can actually be aggravated by the kind of environment one is living in.

A new study proposes that those who live in areas exposed to high levels of pollution may have an increased risk of developing diabetes. In particular, areas which contained higher concentrations of nitrogen oxide which is found in traffic exhaust, increased the chances of its residents in developing diabetes. Even seemingly healthy people were at risk from suffering more due to air pollution. Previous studies have also shown that people who have already contracted diabetes were 10 times more vulnerable to suffering from the effects of air pollution.

The study, which was conducted by the Danish Cancer Society, is also among the first to suggest that healthier individuals were at higher risk for suffering the negative effects of pollution, however this claim still requires more research.

The study involved 52,000 participants who were residents of some of Denmark’s biggest cities, and took place over the course of a decade. 5.5 % of the participants had been diagnosed with diabetes during the beginning of the research. The researchers also took into consideration the concentrations of nitrogen oxide outside people’s homes since 1971, and they found that vulnerability to diabetes was not only increased by long-term exposure to air pollution but also to those who were much older, male, were heavier in build, and were previous or current smokers.

Although these factors are traditional tell-tale signs for a person’s risk to diabetes, exposure to pollution should increase the risk by 4%. However, one should note that the exposure to pollution is not a surefire factor in determining one’s risk because other factors could also be linked, such as stress and poverty. These factors and more also play a considerable part as well as a person’s medical background and family history when it comes to safely concluding the chances of a person in acquiring heart disease and diabetes later on in life.

The same researchers have also recently found that those who have exposures to high levels of pollution are also at an added risk for suffering stroke. There is evidence that supports the theory which in particles found in air pollution can be absorbed by the body and cause inflammation, which then leads to cardiovascular problems and chronic diseases such as asthma, heart attack, stroke, and heart failure. Cigarette smoke has also been found to have the same effect as air pollution on blood vessels, although not everyone is exposed to cigarette smoke the way they are to pollution.

The study concluded that to reduce the traffic-related health risks of those who live in urban areas, good transportation and city planning measures should be taken into effect. It is particularly advisable to separate major roadways and make it far from where people spend more time, such as in their homes, offices, and other livable areas.

Unfortunately we are constantly being bombarded with new toxins everyday many of which cause cancer , diabetes and several major illness. Many times it can take decades for us to know for sure which toxins are actually linked to diseases hence living a more natural lifestyle is recommended to avoid the toxins of modern day. People could also consider detoxifying their bodies with a 30 day Detox Program which could help remove toxins an reduce the risk of cancer and various other illness.