Carbon in Air Pollution May Cross Placenta, Affect Baby’s Health

The placenta may not be as impermeable to environmental pollutants as thought before.

Carbon particles in polluted air can travel through a mother's placenta to the foetal side, which may lead to future health complications as the baby develops, according to a study.

A team of researchers including those from Hasselt University in Belgium identified the presence of black carbon particles that are part of combustion-derived particulate matter in all the placenta samples they screened from 28 new mothers.

The study, published in the journal Nature Communications, suggests that the placenta -- a temporary organ that presents a natural barrier between mother and foetus during the entire pregnancy -- may not be as impermeable to environmental pollutants as thought before.