The team from the University of Aberdeen in Scotland, and Hasselt University, Belgium, said their findings were “especially concerning” because key organ development occurs when foetuses are growing in the uterus.
Researchers examined 60 mothers and their babies in Aberdeen and the Grampian region in Scotland. They also analysed tissue samples from 36 aborted foetuses between seven and 20 weeks of gestation.
The team found evidence of “black carbon particles” – also known as soot particles – in umbilical cord blood, which shows that the particles can cross the placenta. Such soot particles were present in all mothers and newborns.
According to the researchers, the level of particles found was linked to the amount of air pollution the mother was exposed to during pregnancy.
The research team also found such particles in the livers, lungs and brains of the aborted foetuses. They found black carbon particles in all tissue samples analysed.
The scientists...