Cars are a convenience many people wouldn’t want to dowithout, but the air pollution they cause is linked to heart problems. Nowfindings show the nitrous oxide autos release into the air might be associatedwith African-American women developing diabetes, according to a study publishedin the journal Circulation and reported by The Boston Globe.

For the study, researchers at the Boston University Schoolof Public Health and the Sloan Epidemiology Center tracked the health of 4,204 blackwomen for more than 10 years. During that time period, doctors diagnosed 183women in this group with type 2 diabetes. Scientists then used land modelingand data from air monitoring stations to estimate the women’s exposure tonitrous oxides, a common traffic pollutant.