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Science NYC study suggests: Lower child asthma rates with more trees
Science NYC study suggests: Lower child asthma rates with more trees | NYC study suggests: Lower child asthma rates with more trees |
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| by William Atkins | |
| Friday, 02 May 2008 | |
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Science DiscussionsThe New York researchers studied children between the ages of four and five years old. They analyzed the rates of asthma among the children as they grew, along with the hospital admissions for these children up to the age of fifteen years. The children lived in forty-two different United Hospital Fund (UHF) areas—what, in essence, are health service districts used for health statistics reports—within New York City. The UHF areas range in size from three to 67 square kilometers (1.2 to 25.9 square miles). The study was performed primarily because, as the abstract of their paper states, “The prevalence of childhood asthma in the USA increased by 50% from 1980 to 2000, with especially high prevalence in poor urban communities.” In fact, in New York City, asthma, during this time, was the leading cause of hospital admissions for children under the age of fifteen years. The data from the children was then compared with respect to the number of trees in each area, along with such information as population density, sociodemographic characteristics, and proximity to pollution sources. In 1999, the New York City Department of Health (NYCDOH) assessed the children from school screenings as to whether they had asthma or not. Hospital data was taken from the year 1997. The count as to the number of trees within the study was provided by the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation. The results of the researchers found that New York City had an average of 613 trees per square kilometer (where one square kilometer equals about 0.39 square miles). They also found, on average, 9% of children had asthma in the city. When they compared asthma rates and tree density, they found that asthma rates fell by about 25% every time the number of trees per square kilometer increased by 343. In addition, they found that this relationship held even when the other data was taken into consideration (that is, population density, socioeconomic levels, and pollution sources) However, tree density was seen as a factor in reducing asthma only in younger children--not in older children--when based on data from admissions to NYC hospitals for asthma). Although this study was performed by comparing tree density and asthma in children, the authors warn that there may not be a direct correlation between the two. They state that another direct correlation may be at work, and that trees (for example) might just make it more desirable for children to play outside or might just help to improve the quality of the air or may help with some other unknown factor. Additional information about this research and its importance to childhood asthma across the United States with respect to trees follows on the next page. |
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