Toxic air pollutants were found in the lungs of children long before their first breath.

Scottish and Belgian scientists have for the first time found particles of atmospheric pollutants in the lungs, liver and brain of unborn babies - in the womb long before their first breath. In every cubic millimeter of tissue, the researchers found thousands of black carbon particles. They were inhaled by pregnant women, then they got to the fetus through the bloodstream. Previous research has shown that air pollution is associated with increased miscarriages, preterm births, low birth weights, and brain developmental disorders.