Could spending time in green spaces during pregnancy reduce the risk of childhood pneumonia?

New research has shown that infants whose mothers spend more time in green spaces whilst pregnant are less likely to develop pneumonia in their first 2 years of life.  

Background

Pneumonia is a common lung disease that affects all age groups, but children under the age of 2 are most at risk. It is infectious and can be spread through the air that we breathe. 

Vaccination is the main method of prevention, but experts are also considering other ways that could help. One area they are looking at is environmental ‘green spaces’, where there are lots of plants and trees. This could prevent the spread of pneumonia in several ways: by helping to lower air pollution levels, reduce stress and promote physical activity. 

A new study looked at whether mothers may be able to protect their children against pneumonia by spending more time in green spaces during pregnancy. 

What did the study look at?  

This study followed thousands of mothers and children from Japan, born between January 2005 and August 2022, from birth up until the age of 2. Researchers collected information on the time of year the mother became pregnant and whether the baby developed pneumonia in the first two years of life.  

The level of ‘environmental greenness’ varies throughout the year depending on how plants and trees grow. Using images from satellites in space and air pollution measurements, the researchers determined that in Japan, plants and trees are more abundant in the summer and reach their highest level of ‘greenness.’ 

What were the results?  

The research found that:  

• Higher levels of ‘greenness’ during pregnancy was linked with a lower chance of a baby developing pneumonia in the first two years of life.  

• The chance of developing pneumonia was even lower when this exposure to ‘greenness’ happened in the first three months (trimester) of pregnancy.  

The authors suggest that this could be due to spending time in green areas that have lower levels of air pollution.  

Why is this important?

These findings suggest that more green spaces could be introduced in cities as an early intervention to improve health outcomes in children. 

However, the study was not able to consider all factors that could affect a baby’s risk of developing pneumonia. It also does not measure the direct exposure of a mother to green spaces, but the availability of these in the area. More research is needed to understand more about the links between green spaces and pneumonia.  

Read full paper: https://doi.org/10.1183/13993003.02181-2024