Overweight Children Get Higher Doses of Deposited Particles
A panel study of 36 healthy children ages 6-13 has found that obese children receive higher doses of fine particles than thin children, due to the greater volume of air they inhale and exhale.
The study found that for any given height and age, the amount of air breathed in increased with increasing body mass, resulting in increased deposition of particles in the lower respiratory tract. The rate of deposition of particles at rest was nearly three times greater in the overweight children, compared to the leanest children. “These results suggest that overweight children may be at increased risk associated with inhaled particulate matter,” conclude the researchers.
Bennett WD, Zeman KL. Effect of body size on breathing pattern and fine-particle deposition in children. J Appl Physiol 2004; 97:821-826.
The National Library of Medicine [www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov] offers the abstract online.
