Previous research has shown that specific environmental hazards can affect unborn babies. Now, a team of researchers from the University of Aberdeen in Scotland and Hasselt University in Belgium have found evidence of air pollution particles in the lungs, liver and brains of unbo

Scientists believe that these particles can be passed through the placenta to unborn babies as early as the first three months of pregnancy. Previous research has shown that specific environmental hazards can affect unborn babies.

For example, scientists linked exposure to secondhand smoke during pregnancy to an increased risk of birth defects by 13% and a 23% increase in risk of stillbirth. Researchers also found that exposure to lead, pesticides and air pollution can affect the health of babies in the uterus.

Now, a team of researchers from the University of Aberdeen in Scotland and Hasselt University in Belgium have found evidence of air pollution particles in the lungs, liver and brains of unborn babies. Scientists believe that these particles can pass through the placenta into the fetus as early as the first three months of pregnancy.

According to Dr. Tim Navalt, co-senior author of the study and professor of environmental epidemiology at Hasselt University, the main purpose of the study is to determine whether air pollution affects unborn babies. "Previously, we found that granules could enter placenta from mother's lungs ," he told Medical News Today. "If they could get into the blood from the lungs, they would be so small that they have the potential to reach all organs through pregnancy, [including] the next generation of organs."

In this study, the researchers focused on an air-polluting nanoparticles called black carbon . These black particles, also known as soot particles, are the result of burning coal, diesel and other biomass fuels. The black carbon produced by energy accounts for a little over half of all black carbon, followed by transportation, accounting for about 26% of all black carbon emissions.

In addition to its harmful effects on the environment, past studies have shown that black carbon has a negative impact on human health, which is related to cardiovascular disease, asthma, and premature death.

In this study, the team examined maternal and fetal samples from Belgium and the UK. Scientists use a technique called femtosecond pulse illumination to check for the presence of black carbon in the samples. “Before our study, no one knew exactly whether black carbon nanoparticles actually entered the fetus itself,”