Pesticides and heavy metals in soil may have detrimental effects on the cardiovascular system, revealed a new study published in 'Cardiovascular Research'. Pollution of air, water and soil is responsible for at least nine million deaths each year and more than 60 per cent of pollution-related disease and deaths are due to cardiovascular disease such as chronic ischaemic heart disease, heart attack, stroke and heart rhythm disorders (arrhythmias).

"Soil contamination is a less visible danger to human health than dirty air," said author Professor Thomas Munzel of the University Medical Center Mainz (Germany). "But evidence is mounting that pollutants in soil may damage cardiovascular health through a number of mechanisms including inflammation and disrupting the body's natural clock."