Overview
- A poster presented Wednesday at the American Thoracic Society’s ATS 2026 meeting reported that vigorous physical activity was linked to modest increases in lung volume in children but that those gains were reduced where residential ozone was higher.
- Researchers analyzed four years of data from 3,414 children in the Children’s Health in London and Luton (CHILL) cohort using wrist accelerometers for activity, repeated post‑bronchodilator spirometry for lung function, and high‑resolution models for pollution exposure.
- The study estimated that each additional 10 minutes of daily vigorous activity was associated with about 10 mL greater annual growth in FEV1 and FVC, which would sum to roughly 40 mL over four years.
- Ozone exposure consistently attenuated the activity‑related lung gains, while particulate matter showed neutral or uncertain effects with large variance, and authors cautioned the results are preliminary from a conference poster.
- The findings suggest clinicians and parents might use air‑quality forecasts and timing of outdoor play to protect exercise benefits, and they strengthen arguments for policy action to reduce ozone‑forming emissions while follow‑up studies define exposure thresholds and causal links.