Investigating the association between long-term exposure to air pollution and greenness with mortality from neurological, cardio-metabolic and chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases in Greece

Long-term exposure to residential greenness and neurodegenerative disease mortality among older adults: a 13-year follow-up cohort study

“…Stratified by age, results were similar in older adults (≥65 years) [ 24 ]. An ecological study in Greece also found a significant inverse association (HR 0.91) between greenness and mortality from diseases of the nervous system (ICD-10 codes G00-G99) [ 25 ]. Two longitudinal studies found a protective but non-significant association with neurodegenerative disease mortality [ 22 , 23 ].…”

“…However, the available evidence on the association between green spaces and neurodegenerative diseases among the older population is mixed and inconclusive, and studies have so far primarily focused on dementia or its precursor, cognitive decline [ 9 – 21 ]. As far as we are aware, only one ecological and three longitudinal studies investigated the relationship between exposure to green spaces and neurodegenerative disease mortality: two longitudinal studies reported no association [ 22 , 23 ], while the other two observed a beneficial association [ 24 , 25 ]. Of these, only two further used a specific outcome of neurodegenerative disease mortality, namely, dementia mortality [ 23 , 24 ].…”

Association between Residential Greenness and Incidence of Parkinson’s Disease: A Population-Based Cohort Study in South Korea

“…Recent studies have studied the neurological effects of residential greenness and reported significant neuroprotective effects, including reduced depression [ 13 ], slower cognitive decline [ 14 ], increased cortical thickness [ 15 ], reduced mortality from neurological diseases [ 11 ], and reduced risk of AD and non-AD dementia [ 12 ]. Although this study provides evidence about the neurological effect of residential greenness based on PD incidence, there is still a dearth of information, requiring further studies to elucidate the effects of greenness on neurological disorders.…”

“…Considering that 90% of PD cases have no distinct genetic cause [ 8 ], many previous studies have identified behavioral or environmental protective factors for PD, including smoking, caffeine consumption, use of ibuprofen, and physical activity [ 9 ], though only physical activity could be a reasonable intervention. Recently, residential greenness has been widely examined as an emerging environmental factor that reduces various health comorbidities, including neurological diseases [ 10 , 11 , 12 , 13 ]. Good residential greenness has been associated with reduced prevalence of depression [ 13 ], slower cognitive decline [ 14 ], increased cortical thickness [ 15 ], reduced mortality from neurological diseases [ 11 ], and reduced risk of AD and non-AD dementia [ 12 ].…”

“…Recently, residential greenness has been widely examined as an emerging environmental factor that reduces various health comorbidities, including neurological diseases [ 10 , 11 , 12 , 13 ]. Good residential greenness has been associated with reduced prevalence of depression [ 13 ], slower cognitive decline [ 14 ], increased cortical thickness [ 15 ], reduced mortality from neurological diseases [ 11 ], and reduced risk of AD and non-AD dementia [ 12 ]. This recent evidence supports the hypothesis that residential greenness could be a neuroprotective factor for PD.…”