Purpose:

The purpose of this experiment is to determine whether high exposure to

air pollution can lead to the blood condition, anemia.

Hypothesis:
If subjects live in different levels of air pollution then those living in
a higher polluted area are more likely to develop anemia.

Rationale:
Air pollutants enter the bloodstream through the mouth, skin, nose,
and the digestive tract without previously being biotransformed
In the bloodstream, air pollutants can cause damages to the red blood
cells and alter hemoglobin levels
Therefore, if these air pollutants damage the red bloods to the point
where they cannot reproduce effectively or if these air pollutants
cause the hemoglobin levels to drop a significant amount then the
prevalence of anemia is more likely to occur.

Variables:
Independent: the levels of air pollution subjects are exposed to
Dependent: prevalence of anemia

Research:
The six most common air pollutants which are known as
Criteria Pollutants are ozone, particulate matter (PM2.5
and PM10), carbon monoxide, nitrogen dioxide, sulfur
dioxide and lead (Six Common Air Pollutants, 2012).
Carbon monoxide, nitrogen dioxide, and sulfur dioxide are
all created through the emission of fossil fuels
Particulate matter (PM2.5 and PM10): PM2.5 are fine particle
less than 2.5 micrometers formed by the mixture of a
variety of substances and chemicals in the air which are
found in mostly vapors and PM10 are larger particles
between 2.5 micrometers to 10 micrometers and are found
near dusty roadways
High exposure to these air pollutants can cause asthma
attacks, lung disease, heart disease, angina etc. (Nikoli
2007)
Hemoglobin is an iron-enriched protein found in red blood
cells which carries oxygen to the tissues
The normal levels of hemoglobin are 13.8 to 17.2 grams
per deciliter (g/dL) for an adult male, 12.1 to 15.1 g/dL for
an adult female, 14 to 24 g/dL for a newborn and 9.5 to 13
g/dL for an infant
If these hemoglobin levels are lowered below their normal
amounts, anemia develops.
There are over 400 types of anemia, some which are
genetically passed on while some that are developed due
to inadequate amounts of red blood cells, lack of
reproduction of the red blood cells, an insufficient amount
of iron or a lowered level of hemoglobin
About 3 million people in America have anemia today
(Anemia, 2014).
Symptoms of anemia include dizziness, confusion,
weakness, intolerance to physical activity, and jaundice,
yellowing of the skin
Treatment include blood transfusions, surgery, and
plasmapheresis, a procedure that removes antibodies from
the blood (Stankovi, 2006)
If anemia is left untreated it can lead to heart problems,
growth problems in children, problems during pregnancy
for women (Thein, 2010)

Patricia Marek
Niles North High School