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Altitude and child development

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Re: Altitude and child development

#21

Post by gonehome »

vailprogrammer wrote: post #6

> higher altitudes within the US have fewer environmental contaminants Living in Denver, I routinely see headlines (and see with my own eyes) about how terrible the air quality is here, at certain times of the year at least. Wonder if that data controls for whether someone is in a high-altitude city or at the summit of a 14,000+ ft mountain.

HEPA filters work really well, it's worth just buying a few big ones and running them inside.

I got a few in CA because of the fires, but I run them all of the time and they work. I also have some AQI sensors and I can see the pm2.5 drop rapidly when the air filters kick in.

Re: Altitude and child development

#22

Post by runsWphotons »

woeirua wrote: post #18

Meanwhile Colorado is in the top 5 states for educational attainment, and the fittest state in the Union (for many years now). It's interesting that altitude has a noticeable effect on birth weight, but it clearly doesn't really affect the outcome a whole lot.

Maybe the people there would attain more at lower altitudes

Re: Altitude and child development

#23

Post by throwawaylinux »

sundvor wrote: post #19
shill_cunt wrote: post #7

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I remember flying into Denver in the winter and seeing the inversion of just awful brown haze. I cried for my lungs on that trip.

There are numerous studies on the myriad bad health effects of PM2.5. The sooner we can transition to EVs, the better.

What's the PM2.5 contribution of automobile exhaust in a city like Denver, 5-10%ish?

Re: Altitude and child development

#24

Post by garren »

shill_cunt wrote: post #7
vailprogrammer wrote: post #6

> higher altitudes within the US have fewer environmental contaminants Living in Denver, I routinely see headlines (and see with my own eyes) about how terrible the air quality is here, at certain times of the year at least. Wonder if that data controls for whether someone is in a high-altitude city or at the summit of a 14,000+ ft mountain.

I remember flying into Denver in the winter and seeing the inversion of just awful brown haze. I cried for my lungs on that trip.

Yeah, the smell that comes with it in the fall and winter is something else. I like Denver, but the brown cloud is no fun. It’s a downer coming out of the hills on I70 into the city and seeing it hanging there.

Re: Altitude and child development

#25

Post by TeeMassive »

jbandela1 wrote: post #16

Based on what I learned in medical school, my guess would be iodine deficiency. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Congenital_iodine_deficiency_s... Iodine is vitally important for child development, especially brain development. In mountainous regions, there can be less iodine in the soil (and you are away from the ocean where fish and other seafood are a ready source of iodine). IIRC, it used to be a big issue in the Al…

Yeah put cretinism hasn't been a problem for generations now.

Re: Altitude and child development

#26

Post by garren »

gonehome wrote: post #21
vailprogrammer wrote: post #6

> higher altitudes within the US have fewer environmental contaminants Living in Denver, I routinely see headlines (and see with my own eyes) about how terrible the air quality is here, at certain times of the year at least. Wonder if that data controls for whether someone is in a high-altitude city or at the summit of a 14,000+ ft mountain.

HEPA filters work really well, it's worth just buying a few big ones and running them inside. I got a few in CA because of the fires, but I run them all of the time and they work. I also have some AQI sensors and I can see the pm2.5 drop rapidly when the air filters kick in.

I don’t think it’s just particulates, Denver and the front range are routinely in the news for ozone issues [0]. I think that might be altitude related as well, though it may just be pollution. Den doesn’t quite make the top ten list of US cities with ozone problems, but it’s gotta be close [1].

[0] https://www.govinfo.gov/app/details/FR-2019-08-15/2019-17405 [1] https://www.usnews.com/news/cities/slideshows/the-10-us-citi...

Re: Altitude and child development

#28

Post by vailprogrammer »

woeirua wrote: post #18

Meanwhile Colorado is in the top 5 states for educational attainment, and the fittest state in the Union (for many years now). It's interesting that altitude has a noticeable effect on birth weight, but it clearly doesn't really affect the outcome a whole lot.

More than half the population of CO was born outside of the state. I would be surprised if it was still a top 5 state for educational attainment when looking only at those born and raised in the state.

Re: Altitude and child development

#29

Post by ineptech »

shill_cunt wrote: post #7
vailprogrammer wrote: post #6

> higher altitudes within the US have fewer environmental contaminants Living in Denver, I routinely see headlines (and see with my own eyes) about how terrible the air quality is here, at certain times of the year at least. Wonder if that data controls for whether someone is in a high-altitude city or at the summit of a 14,000+ ft mountain.

I remember flying into Denver in the winter and seeing the inversion of just awful brown haze. I cried for my lungs on that trip.

I gather it's better now, but flying in to LA in the 90s was similar. It felt like visiting God's ashtray.

Re: Altitude and child development

#30

Post by ineptech »

the_af wrote: post #20
generalizations wrote: post #4

I found it more interesting that apparently it's possible to get paid by the hour to do research on subjects like this.

Or at least: someone writing in Lesswrong, a not particularly reliable site (to put it mildly, but I don't want to get into an argument about it), claims this.

It was extensively cited, and written by a professional researcher using their real name who has no particular axe to grind - what more could you possibly ask for?
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