Definition and research guide
This page combines a MeSH definition, publication statistics and selected research abstracts. It is a starting point for reading the literature, not a medical textbook or a systematic evidence review.
Content available: 3 complete abstracts (577 words), 9 references. Full article text is not stored or reproduced here; follow the PMID, DOI or PMC links to read the original sources and their access terms.
Definition
Contamination of the air, bodies of water, or land with substances that are harmful to human health and the environment.
Definition: NLM Medical Subject Headings (MeSH) scope note (Public domain (U.S. National Library of Medicine); attribution requested). View the MeSH record.
Also known as: Pollution, Environmental; Soil Pollution; Pollution, Soil.
Where it fits in the MeSH classification
- Broader topics
- Public Health
- Narrower topics
- Air Pollution; Biofouling; Body Burden; Environmental Exposure; Environmental Restoration and Remediation; Food Contamination; Light Pollution; Noise; Petroleum Pollution; Traffic-Related Pollution; Waste Products; Water Pollution
- See also
- Environmental Pollutants
Research landscape
PubMed indexes 732,079 records tagged with the MeSH heading “Environmental Pollution” (counts retrieved 2026-10-31). 199,961 of them (27.3%) were published from 2020 onward, and the busiest period so far is 2010-2019 with 242,667 records.
Reviews account for 69,370 records (9.5%) and meta-analyses for 3,944. Randomized controlled trials number 3,665 (0.5%) as a share of all records on the topic. Randomized trials make up only a small share of this literature, so much of what is known comes from laboratory, observational or descriptive work.
Show the data
| Period | Records |
|---|---|
| through 1999 | 139,767 |
| 2000-2009 | 149,684 |
| 2010-2019 | 242,667 |
| 2020 onward | 199,961 |
Publication-type chart data
| Type | Records | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Reviews | 69,370 | 9.5% |
| Meta-analyses | 3,944 | 0.5% |
| Randomized controlled trials | 3,665 | 0.5% |
Method: PubMed query "Environmental Pollution"[MeSH Terms] with publication-type and date filters, retrieved 2026-10-31.
Reading the evidence in public health and nutrition
Population and nutrition studies mostly observe what people eat, breathe or are exposed to and then look for links with health, which shows association and not proof of cause. Self-reported diet is imprecise, people who eat or live differently also differ in other ways, and effects measured across a population may not apply to one person. Check the study design, how exposure was measured, what else was accounted for and the size of the effect, not only whether it was statistically significant.
Evidence from open-access studies
These open-access studies come from PubMed’s best-match results for this heading (papers whose main topic it is), ranked here by citation count, with one recent addition. Each abstract is reproduced in full under its recorded open licence so that you can read the authors’ own words. They illustrate the literature; they are not a systematic summary of it. Citation counts measure attention, not reliability or clinical benefit.
| Study / authors | Year | Source label / design | Europe PMC citations | Licence / source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Precision residential greenspace, urban environmental exposures, and incident dementia among older adults in Sweden: A 16-year cohort study | 2026 | Research article Design not recorded in structured metadata | 1 | cc by PMID 42805935 · DOI · PMC13619732 |
| Emerging investigator series: spatially and temporally resolved lightning NOx production rates obtained with space-based lightning detectors | 2026 | Research article Design not recorded in structured metadata | 0 | cc by PMID 42845108 · DOI · PMC13647042 |
| Not everywhere, not always: 30 targeted PFAS in ambient surface waters of Queensland, Australia | 2026 | Research article Design not recorded in structured metadata | 0 | cc by PMID 42900285 · DOI · PMC13683488 |
Precision residential greenspace, urban environmental exposures, and incident dementia among older adults in Sweden: A 16-year cohort study [1]
Abstract reading summary — source excerpts
- Opening excerpt
- IntroductionResidential greenspace is linked to mental and cardiometabolic health, but longitudinal studies on detailed greenspace and dementia incidence are limited.
- Closing excerpt
- DiscussionClose residential greenspace may reduce dementia risk in older adults, particularly women.
- Interpretation limits
- Verbatim excerpts from the authors’ abstract; the closing excerpt may describe a finding, limitation or recommendation. Design, population, effect size and uncertainty have not been independently extracted or appraised. Read the complete abstract and linked paper before interpreting the findings.
Read complete abstract (143 words)
IntroductionResidential greenspace is linked to mental and cardiometabolic health, but longitudinal studies on detailed greenspace and dementia incidence are limited.MethodsWe followed 2993 dementia-free participants in the Swedish National Study on Aging and Care Kungsholmen for 16 years; 477 developed clinically diagnosed dementia. Greenspace was assessed using normalized difference vegetation index within 100-, 250-, and 500-m residential buffers. Cox models estimated hazard ratios (HRs) per interquartile-range greenspace increment and tested effect modification by air pollution, road traffic noise, blue space, age, sex, and apolipoprotein E-ε4 (APOE-ε4).ResultsHigher greenspace within 100 m was associated with lower dementia incidence (HR = 0.79, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 0.64-0.96), whereas associations for larger buffers were attenuated. Associations were stronger in women (HR = 0.69, 95% CI = 0.54-0.89) than men (HR = 0.93, 95% CI = 0.71-1.24).DiscussionClose residential greenspace may reduce dementia risk in older adults, particularly women.
Abstract reproduced from the open-access article under the recorded cc by licence; © the authors. PMID 42805935 · DOI · PMC13619732
Emerging investigator series: spatially and temporally resolved lightning NOx production rates obtained with space-based lightning detectors [2]
Abstract reading summary — source excerpts
- Opening excerpt
- Lightning is a dominant free tropospheric source of nitrogen oxides (NOx), impacting climate by affecting global tropospheric ozone (O3) and other key oxidants.
- Closing excerpt
- Independent validation is critically needed, given our updated LNOx emissions offer a viable solution to model overestimates in O3 and OH and underestimates in the lifetime of the greenhouse gas methane.
- Interpretation limits
- Verbatim excerpts from the authors’ abstract; the closing excerpt may describe a finding, limitation or recommendation. Design, population, effect size and uncertainty have not been independently extracted or appraised. Read the complete abstract and linked paper before interpreting the findings.
Read complete abstract (252 words)
Lightning is a dominant free tropospheric source of nitrogen oxides (NOx), impacting climate by affecting global tropospheric ozone (O3) and other key oxidants. We calculate temporally and spatially resolved lightning NOx (LNOx) production rates using lightning flash energies from space-based Lightning Imaging Sensors (LIS). Our production rates average ∼309 moles per flash (mol fl-1) over oceans, peaking at midday, and ∼172 mol fl-1 over land, peaking in the early morning. Replacing static values in the original GEOS-Chem model inventory with our spatially and hourly varying production rates yields global annual LNOx emissions of 4.4 Tg nitrogen (N) for 2015-2019; almost 2 Tg N less than the original inventory. Annual terrestrial LNOx emissions still exceed those over the ocean, due to more frequent lightning over land, but the relative proportion of maritime emissions increases. The largest decline in LNOx emissions is north of 35°N in summer, as static 500 mol fl-1 is replaced with 150-250 mol fl-1. Global decline in LNOx emissions decreases abundances of free tropospheric NOx, O3, the hydroxyl radical (OH) and peroxyacetyl nitrate (PAN). Hourly variability in LIS flash radiances is broadly consistent with high-frequency Geostationary Lightning Mapper (GLM) flash energies, though the comparison is limited to tropical America. Introducing hourly variability in LNOx production rates leads to a greater than 10% localised decline in equatorial lower tropospheric O3. Independent validation is critically needed, given our updated LNOx emissions offer a viable solution to model overestimates in O3 and OH and underestimates in the lifetime of the greenhouse gas methane.
Abstract reproduced from the open-access article under the recorded cc by licence; © the authors. PMID 42845108 · DOI · PMC13647042
Not everywhere, not always: 30 targeted PFAS in ambient surface waters of Queensland, Australia [3]
Abstract reading summary — source excerpts
- Opening excerpt
- This study provides a summary of ambient concentrations of 30 commonly analysed perfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) at 54 sites adjacent to various land use types across the east coast of Queensland, Australia.
- Closing excerpt
- Although PFAS (such as PFOS) are described as ubiquitous, the results from this ambient monitoring program indicate that this assumption does not necessarily apply to all ambient surface waters in Queensland.
- Interpretation limits
- Verbatim excerpts from the authors’ abstract; the closing excerpt may describe a finding, limitation or recommendation. Design, population, effect size and uncertainty have not been independently extracted or appraised. Read the complete abstract and linked paper before interpreting the findings.
Read complete abstract (182 words)
This study provides a summary of ambient concentrations of 30 commonly analysed perfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) at 54 sites adjacent to various land use types across the east coast of Queensland, Australia. Sites were sampled for surface water every 2 months for a year (2019-2020). The results showed higher concentrations of PFAS in surface waters adjacent to major city areas (e.g. urban, industrial, residential land use types), and the lowest in surface waters adjacent to remote and regional areas (e.g. national parks, agriculture land use types). Perfluorooctanesulfonic acid (PFOS) was the most reported compound (in 53% of samples), ranging from -1 in remote areas, -1 in outer regional areas, -1 in inner regional areas, and -1 in major cities. No PFAS were reported at nine of the 54 sites during the six monitoring rounds, and 16 out of 30 PFAS were not reported at any of the sites sampled over the year. Although PFAS (such as PFOS) are described as ubiquitous, the results from this ambient monitoring program indicate that this assumption does not necessarily apply to all ambient surface waters in Queensland.
Abstract reproduced from the open-access article under the recorded cc by licence; © the authors. PMID 42900285 · DOI · PMC13683488
Key reviews and meta-analyses
The most cited review-type papers among PubMed’s best-match results for this heading, listed with bibliographic details only. Follow the links for the full text and access terms.
- Research article Environmental risk factors for multiple sclerosis: a comprehensive systematic review and meta-analysis [4]
- Research article Ambient air pollution exposure and adult asthma incidence: a systematic review and meta-analysis [5]
- Research article Long-term air pollution exposure and incident dementia: a systematic review and meta-analysis [6]
- Research article Air pollution exposure and prevalence of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease and related cirrhosis: A systematic review and meta-analysis [7]
- Research article Climate Conditions, Weather Changes, and Air Pollutants and Atopic Dermatitis: A Meta-Analysis [8]
- Research article Chemical constituents of PM2.5 and their association with childhood asthma and lung function: a systematic review and meta-analysis [9]
References
- Stenfors CUD, Wu J, Grande G, Pyko A, Löhmus M, Pershagen G, et al.. Precision residential greenspace, urban environmental exposures, and incident dementia among older adults in Sweden: A 16-year cohort study. . 2026. PMID 42805935 · DOI · PMC13619732
- Horner RP, Marais EA, Murray LT. Emerging investigator series: spatially and temporally resolved lightning NOx production rates obtained with space-based lightning detectors. . 2026. PMID 42845108 · DOI · PMC13647042
- Baddiley B, Myburgh A, Vardy S. Not everywhere, not always: 30 targeted PFAS in ambient surface waters of Queensland, Australia. . 2026. PMID 42900285 · DOI · PMC13683488
- Vitturi BK, Cellerino M, Boccia D, Leray E, Correale J, Dobson R, et al.. Environmental risk factors for multiple sclerosis: a comprehensive systematic review and meta-analysis. J Neurol. 2025. PMID 40664781 · DOI · PMC12263771
- Lee S, Tian D, He R, Cragg JJ, Carlsten C, Giang A, et al.. Ambient air pollution exposure and adult asthma incidence: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Lancet Planet Health. 2024. PMID 39674196 · DOI
- Best Rogowski CB, Bredell C, Shi Y, Tien-Smith A, Szybka M, Fung KW, et al.. Long-term air pollution exposure and incident dementia: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Lancet Planet Health. 2025. PMID 40716448 · DOI
- He X, Zhang S, Bai Q, Pan M, Jiang Y, Liu W, et al.. Air pollution exposure and prevalence of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease and related cirrhosis: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Ecotoxicol Environ Saf. 2025. PMID 39657383 · DOI
- Park M, Mohsen ST, Katz T, Sood S, Sy SMT, Rochwerg B, et al.. Climate Conditions, Weather Changes, and Air Pollutants and Atopic Dermatitis: A Meta-Analysis. JAMA Dermatol. 2025. PMID 40560568 · DOI · PMC12199181
- Li K, Bao Y, Gao J, Chen B, Xia Y, Zhao Y, et al.. Chemical constituents of PM2.5 and their association with childhood asthma and lung function: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Eur J Pediatr. 2025. PMID 40478447 · DOI
About this article
- Sources
- NLM Medical Subject Headings (definition, synonyms); NCBI PubMed (counts, identifiers); Europe PMC (open-access abstracts and citation counts).
- Verification
- Every reference was resolved against PubMed on 2026-11-04; title, year and DOI matched.
- Review state
- automated source verified; no human expert review has been recorded yet.
- Version
- 1, last updated 2026-11-04.
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Evidence strength
EvidenceHelix's computed view of the study designs behind this topic: how common meta-analyses, randomized trials and reviews are, how recent the literature is, and a plain-language reading. It describes the design mix of the literature. It is not a quality appraisal of any study, and it is not medical advice.