Anna Louise Hansell is a British physician who is Professor of Environmental Epidemiology and Director of the Centre for Environmental Health and Sustainability at the

University of Leicester , mottoeng = So that they may have life , established = , type = public research university , endowment = £20.0 million , budget = £326 million , chancellor = David Willetts , vice_chancellor = Nishan Canagarajah , head_labe ...

. During the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

, Hansell studied the relationship between pollution and

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was COVID-19 pandemic in Hubei, identified in Wuhan, China, in December ...

Education and early career

Hansell originally studied medicine. She spent six years working in clinical medicine, before specialising in public health. Hansell completed her doctoral research at

Imperial College London Imperial College London (legally Imperial College of Science, Technology and Medicine) is a public research university in London, United Kingdom. Its history began with Prince Albert, consort of Queen Victoria, who developed his vision for a cu ...

on the epidemiology of

chronic obstructive pulmonary disease Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a type of progressive lung disease characterized by long-term respiratory symptoms and airflow limitation. The main symptoms include shortness of breath and a cough, which may or may not produce ...

(COPD) in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

. After completing her doctoral degree she was awarded a

Wellcome Trust The Wellcome Trust is a charitable foundation focused on health research based in London, in the United Kingdom. It was established in 1936 with legacies from the pharmaceutical magnate Henry Wellcome (founder of one of the predecessors of Glaxo ...

clinical research fellowship.

Research and academic service

Her research considers environmental noise and

air pollution Air pollution is the contamination of air due to the presence of substances in the atmosphere that are harmful to the health of humans and other living beings, or cause damage to the climate or to materials. There are many different types ...

. As part of this effort, Hansell made use of historical data and models to estimate black smoke and sulphur dioxide levels across the United Kingdom in 1971, 1981, 1991 and 2001. She demonstrated that living in high levels of air pollution in the past increased people's risks of

respiratory disease Respiratory diseases, or lung diseases, are pathology, pathological conditions affecting the organs and tissues that make gas exchange difficult in Breathing, air-breathing animals. They include conditions of the respiratory tract including the t ...

decades after exposure. For example, people who lived in polluted areas in 1971 had a 14% greater risk of dying in 2002 than people who lived in low pollution areas. Hansell has studied the impact of air pollution on birth outcomes, working primarily with mothers in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

. Her work showed that in 3% of babies born with a

low birth weight Low birth weight (LBW) is defined by the World Health Organization as a birth weight of an infant of or less, regardless of gestational age. Infants born with LBW have added health risks which require close management, often in a neonatal intensi ...

the low weight can be attributed to maternal residential exposure to air pollutants. She went on to demonstrate that exposure to

, particularly

PM10 Particulates – also known as atmospheric aerosol particles, atmospheric particulate matter, particulate matter (PM) or suspended particulate matter (SPM) – are microscopic particles of solid or liquid matter suspended in the air. The te ...

particulates due to road traffic, in the

first trimester Pregnancy is the time during which one or more offspring develops ( gestates) inside a woman's uterus (womb). A multiple pregnancy involves more than one offspring, such as with twins. Pregnancy usually occurs by sexual intercourse, but ca ...

and early life can reduce children's lung function. In 2014 Hansell launched the Small Health Area Statistics Unit Environment and Health Atlas. The atlas visualised local risk factors for fourteen different diseases, as well as providing details about common environmental agents. Hansell has continued to study the COPD throughout her career, combining data from the

UK Biobank UK Biobank is a large long-term biobank study in the United Kingdom (UK) which is investigating the respective contributions of genetic predisposition and environmental exposure (including nutrition, lifestyle, medications etc.) to the developmen ...

with air pollution monitoring systems. She showed that annual increases of 5 µgm⁻³

PM2.5 Particulates – also known as atmospheric aerosol particles, atmospheric particulate matter, particulate matter (PM) or suspended particulate matter (SPM) – are microscopic particles of solid or liquid matter suspended in the air. The ter ...

particulates in air was comparable to two years of ageing. These investigations allowed her to identify that i populations who live in areas where PM2.5 levels are above the maximum levels recommended by the

World Health Organization The World Health Organization (WHO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations responsible for international public health. The WHO Constitution states its main objective as "the attainment by all peoples of the highest possible level of h ...

, COPD is four times higher than in people who experience

passive smoking Passive smoking is the inhalation of tobacco smoke, called secondhand smoke (SHS), or environmental tobacco smoke (ETS), by persons other than the intended "active" smoker. It occurs when tobacco smoke enters an environment, causing its inhalat ...

. She has also demonstrated that people who live in low income households are considerably more likely to be detrimentally impacted by air pollution. Alongside investigating the impact of air pollution, Hansell has studied the impact of noise pollution on mortality. By combining data on hospital admissions and mortality of a cohort of over three million people who live around

Heathrow Airport Heathrow Airport (), called ''London Airport'' until 1966 and now known as London Heathrow , is a major international airport in London, England. It is the largest of the six international airports in the London airport system (the others be ...

, Hansell showed that deaths due to stroke, heart and circulatory disease are more likely in areas with high levels of aircraft noise. During the

, it became apparent that air pollution might play a role in the severity of

. Hansell investigated the relationships between air pollution and rates of mortality due to coronavirus. Alongside her own research, Hansell provided expert advice on the relationship between pollution, health and viral infection. She remarked that the lockdown in the United Kingdom would result in significant reductions in air pollution, in line with travel restrictions and reduced industry operation.

Academic service

She was appointed the President of Epidemiology in the

Royal Society of Medicine The Royal Society of Medicine (RSM) is a medical society in the United Kingdom, headquartered in London. History The Society was established in 1805 as Medical and Chirurgical Society of London, meeting in two rooms in barristers’ chambers ...

in 2005. In 2010 Hansell was made Assistant Director of the UK Small Area Health Statistics Unit at

. Hansell is a member of the

Public Health England Public Health England (PHE) was an executive agency of the Department of Health and Social Care in England which began operating on 1 April 2013 to protect and improve health and wellbeing and reduce health inequalities. Its formation came as a ...

Environmental Hazards Programme Board, as well as the

Government of the United Kingdom ga, Rialtas a Shoilse gd, Riaghaltas a Mhòrachd , image = HM Government logo.svg , image_size = 220px , image2 = Royal Coat of Arms of the United Kingdom (HM Government).svg , image_size2 = 180px , caption = Royal coat of arms of t ...

Committee on the Medical Effects of Air Pollutants Committee on the Medical Effects of Air Pollutants (COMEAP) is a group of scientific experts who provide independent and authoritative advice to the UK government on the health effects of air pollution. Its core members are typically senior academi ...

Selected publications

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References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hansell, Anna Living people Year of birth missing (living people) Women epidemiologists Academics of the University of Leicester Alumni of Imperial College London Environmental scientists British women medical doctors British epidemiologists Air pollution in the United Kingdom