Environmental pollution is now a leading public health crisis around the world and fulfills the criteria of an environmental risk factor that impacts more than the well-recognized cardiopulmonary diseases; it is now recognized to affect mental, neurodevelopmental, reproductive, and pregnancy health as well. The goal of this review was to consolidate existing evidence on the effects of environmental pollutants, including air pollutants, endocrine-disrupting chemicals, heavy metals, persistent organic pollutants, pesticides, per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) and emerging pollutants such as microplastics, and the shared biological processes that connect these exposures to harmful health effects.
A narrative review of all peer-reviewed publications from 2000 to 2025 was performed by searching through PubMed/MEDLINE, Scopus and Web of Science. Studies examining associations of environmental pollutants and mental health, neurodevelopmental, reproductive, and pregnancy outcomes were reviewed with a focus on systematic reviews, meta-analyses, cohort studies, biomonitoring investigations, and mechanistic studies. Cumulative and lifelong environmental exposures were assessed by evidence synthesis based on the exposome framework.
The studied evidence shows consistent relationships between PM, NO
2
, bisphenols, phthalates, PFAS, pesticides, heavy metals (specifically lead, mercury, and cadmium), polychlorinated biphenyls, dioxins and microplastics and elevated risk of depression, anxiety, cognitive impairment, impaired neurodevelopment, decreased semen quality, diminished fecundability, ovarian dysfunction, altered pubertal development, adverse pregnancy outcomes, placental injury, and fetal growth abnormalities. These harmful effects are achieved via common biological pathways such as oxidative stress, neuroinflammation, endocrine disruption, mitochondrial dysfunction, immune dysregulation, vascular injury, and epigenetic changes. There is also evidence that combined exposure to several pollutants can have additive or synergistic effects, and that sensitive groups to pollution exposure include pregnant women, children, and socio-economically disadvantaged groups.
Pollution has emerged as an important and increasing concern from a life course perspective on mental and reproductive health. The exposome concept provides a simplified framework to understand cumulative environmental exposures and their health effects. Enforcing polluter accountability, curbing the use of hazardous substances, better monitoring exposure to pollution, better monitoring of reproductive and mental health outcomes, and incorporating pollution into public health policies are critical steps to curbing the disease burden of pollution and to safeguarding sensitive populations.
Abhinav Sahay, Upanshu Mishra, Arundhati Sharma et al.· Journal of Psychosexual Heal...· 0 citations
Environmental pollution is a growing global public health threat and is not limited to classic cardiopulmonary effects, impeding numerous physiological systems. Evidence of an association between environmental contaminant exposures and poor mental health, neurodevelopmental, reproductive, and pregnancy outcomes is increasing. The current evidence on main pollution sources, such as atmospheric pollution, endocrine-disrupting chemicals, heavy metals, persistent organic pollutants, pesticides, per- and polyfluorocarbons (PFAS), and emerging contaminants such as microplastics, is summarized, along with underlying biological mechanisms and public health implications.
A narrative review was conducted of peer-reviewed literature, and linkages between environmental exposures and mental, reproductive, and pregnancy-related outcomes were addressed. Studies on air pollutants, bisphenols, phthalates, lead, mercury, and cadmium, pesticides, PFAS, polychlorinated biphenyls, dioxins, and microplastics were all included. The focus was on pinpointing common mechanistic features and merging together results with the exposome approach that considers exposure to the environment throughout an individual’s life.
When cells are continually exposed to various environmental pollutants, there is increasing evidence of these substances being linked to depression, anxiety, cognitive dysfunction, abnormalities in neurodevelopment, worsening semen quality, diminished fecundability, ovarian dysfunction, abnormalities in sexual maturation, and harmful pregnancy effects such as damage to the placenta or developmental defects in the fetus. These effects involve interrelated pathways including oxidative stress, neuroinflammation, endocrine disruption, mitochondrial dysfunction, immune dysregulation, vascular injury, and epigenetic changes. Further, it is possible that exposure to a combination of pollutants may result in additive or synergistic effects, leading to effects that are greater than would be caused by any individual pollutant, increasing vulnerability in sensitive groups such as pregnant women, infants, children, and socioeconomically disadvantaged groups. The exposome allows us to frame these exposures in a comprehensive way to understand these cumulative and lifelong exposures.
The issue of environmental pollution severely affects mental and reproductive health and is an increasing health threat. The current evidence suggests that there is an urgent need to reinforce regulatory policies, exposure monitoring, and a surge in surveillance of health effects. Future studies should focus on longitudinal exposures, mixture exposure indicators, and using data on the exposome to understand risk and to find vulnerable human groups. There is a strong need to strengthen environmental health policies, particularly to mitigate and prevent disease burden and ensure population health in an environment with an ever-increasing disease burden and negative impacts of pollution.
Abhinav Sahay, Arundhati Sharma, Upanshu Mishra et al.· Journal of Psychosexual Heal...· 0 citations
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