Assessment of lipid profiles of adult male athletes from two different air pollutant zones of West Bengal, India

The study was carried out with an objective to find out the effects of air pollution on lipid profiles of trained and untrained males of West Bengal. Sample consisted of 60 sprinters, 60 footballers and 120 untrained males, subdivided into two groups from two zones namely Tollygunge and Sonarpur. SPM, RPM, SOx and NOx of ambient air were monitored for both zones. Height and weight of all the males was measured. Venous blood sample was drawn from the antecubital vein and the cholesterol, triglycerides, HDL-cholesterol, LDL-cholesterol and cholesterol/ HDL-cholesterol ratio were determined by standard methods. Results revealed that air pollutant concentration was significantly higher in Tollygunge than Sonarpur. Lipid profile was significantly poor in untrained males compared to either the footballers or the sprinters in both regions. However, no significant difference in lipid profile was observed when compared between footballers and sprinters, though lipid profile was better in footballers than sprinters. Alternatively, all lipid parameters of both trained and untrained males were significantly better in Sonarpur than Tollygunge. It was concluded that environmental air pollutants might influence lipid profile adversely both in trained and sedentary males. However, further study in this area is needed.