Exposure to fine particulate matter constituents and cognitive function performance, potential mediation by sleep quality: A multicenter study among Chinese adults aged 40-89 years.

Although exposure to fine particulate matter (PM) has been associated with cognitive decline, little is known about which PM constituents are more harmful. Recent study on the association between PM and sleep quality prompted us to propose that sleep quality may mediate the adverse effects of PM components on cognitive decline. Understanding the association between PM constituents and cognitive function, as well as the mediating role of sleep quality provides a future intervention target for improving cognitive function. Using data involving 1834 participants from a multicenter cross-sectional study in nine cities of the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei (BTH) region in China, we undertook multivariable linear regression analyses to quantify the association of annual moving-average PM and its chemical constituents with cognitive function and to assess the modifying role of exposure characteristic in this association. Besides, we examined the extent to which this association of PM constituents with cognitive function was mediated via sleep quality by a mediation analysis. We observed significantly negative associations between an increase of one interquartile range increase in PM [-0.876 (95 % CI: -1.205, -0.548)], organic carbon [-0.481 (95 % CI: -0.744, -0.219)], potassium [-0.344 (95 % CI: -0.530, -0.157)], iron [-0.468 (95 % CI: -0.646, -0.291)], and ammonium ion [-0.125 (95 % CI: -0.197, -0.052)] and cognitive decline. However, we didn't find any individual components more harmful than PM. Poor sleep quality partially mediated the estimated associations, which were explained ranging from 2.28 % to 11.99 %. Stratification analyses showed that people living in areas with lower greenspace were more susceptible to specific PM components. Our study suggests that the adverse effect of suffering from PM components is more pronounced among individuals with poor sleep quality, amplifying environmental inequalities in health. Besides reducing environmental pollution, improving sleep quality may be another measure worth considering to improve cognition if our research is confirmed in the future.