In 1981, less more than a month after evidence of global warming first appeared on his site front page, The New York Times asked BF Skinner about the fate of humanity. A eminent psychologist recently argued that a certain feature of the human mind virtually guarantees global ecological catastrophe. “Why don’t we take action to save our world?” Skinner asked, citing the myriad threats facing the planet.
His answer: Human behavior is almost entirely regulated by our experiences – in particular, what actions have been rewarded or punished in the past. A future that hasn’t happened yet will never have the same impact on what we do; we will seek familiar rewards today—money, comfort, security, pleasure, power—even if tomorrow it endangers everyone on the planet.
Skinner was one of the most influential thinkers of the 20th century, but he is rarely credited with the foresight of this warning, which predicted the behavior of fossil fuel executives and politicians for the next four decades. I’ve struggled with this a lot. I am a pediatrician in Reno, Nevada the fastest warming city in the USA. Every day I look into the eyes of babies, children and teenagers. Skinner argued that our choices will only change when the consequences of environmental destruction move from “tomorrow” to “today.” I believe that by 2025, the harm to children will be so obvious and immediate that parents – the sleeping giant in the climate fight – will wake up and see what the fossil fuel industry has done.
Over the past decade, for example, my city has become increasingly darkened by wildfire smoke from California; 65 million Americans, mainly in the West, are currently experiencing such “smoke crises”. Everyone understands that smoke causes breathing problems; we all cough and wheeze as the air becomes unsafe for weeks. Fewer people understand that children are more vulnerable to such events for many reasons, mainly related to their different physiology, diminutive size and immature organs, which, because they are still developing, are very susceptible to environmental damage. Children’s lungsfor example, they are literally shaped by the quality of the air they breathe. Children who chronically inhale particulate pollution – such as those living in the most polluted neighborhoods in Los Angeles – tend to have smaller and stiffer lungs.
In 2025, the media will realize that the damage caused by these small pollutants is even more profound. That’s because a growing body of science shows that fine and ultrafine particles, typically associated with toxic chemicals and hefty metals in smoke and wildfire fumes, cause brain damage in children. Worryingly, they appear to be contributing to the autism epidemic attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), and also increases the risk of learning disabilities, behavioral problems and later dementia.
Why? Because these small pollutants don’t stay in the lungs; they enter the bloodstream and penetrate other organs, including the brain, which, like a child’s lungs, is still growing and developing and is therefore more susceptible to damage.
Evidence for the neurological effects of particles comes from brain imaging, histology, and epidemiology. We know that even before birth, particles inhaled by pregnant women may cross the placenta and damage the fetus; MRI studies conducted in several countries have shown changed brain architecture in children exposed to the virus prenatally, many of whom had cognitive and behavioral problems. After birth, particles can also penetrate the prefrontal cortex – the part of the brain behind the forehead – when inhaled through the nose. When scientists studied the brains of children and newborn adults in Mexicoeminent for its bad air, they discovered fossil fuel particles surrounded by Alzheimer’s disease-like plaques embedded in the prefrontal cortex.
Evidence for an association with autism and ADHD has emerged from more than a decade of epidemiological studies conducted around the world. In many years of studies for example, among nearly 300,000 children in southern California, prenatal exposure to PM2.5 (the smallest particle regulated by law) was found to significantly augment the risk of autism. And a recent study over 164,000 children in China found that long-term exposure to fine particles increases the risk of ADHD. Although autism and ADHD are sophisticated disorders with multiple causes, both genetic and environmental, it is increasingly clear that air pollution – caused by fossil fuels and worsened by climate change – is a significant risk factor.