Air pollution, both indoors and outdoors, kills many people around the world, including children, and is now more deadly than smoking, according to a report published this Wednesday, June 19, under the auspices of Unicef.
More than eight million people, including 700,000 children under five, died in 2021 from reasons related to air pollution, according to this work by scientists at the American Health Effects Institute.
These results are based on Global Burden Disease, a gigantic database containing data from more than 200 countries. However, it has not been published in a scientific journal.
A greater threat than smoking
In terms of mortality rate, as measured by researchers, exposure to air pollution today represents a greater threat than smoking or poor diet.
In most cases, deaths related to air pollution are associated with the inhalation of fine particles called PM2.5, less than 2.5 microns in diameter. It is known that they promote numerous pathologies: lung cancer, cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, etc.
The report’s authors highlight the increasingly deadly role of ozone pollution, fueled by events related to global warming. “We see more and more regions of the world exposed to very brief and intense episodes of air pollution,” researcher Pallavi Pant, a member of the Health Effects Institute, told AFP, referring to forest fires or strong heat waves.
Every day 2,000 children under five die
Some of the most significant health impacts of air pollution are seen in children. Particularly vulnerable, “children inhale more air per kilogram of body weight and absorb more pollutants than adults while their lungs, bodies and brains are still developing,” the report says.
Among the most common diseases related to air pollution are: pneumonia, responsible for one in five childhood deaths worldwide, and asthma, the most common chronic respiratory disease among older children.
However, when it comes to infant mortality, the main cause is the use of fuels (coal, wood, etc.) for cooking, especially in Asia and Africa. The inequalities related to the impact of air pollution on children’s health are particularly striking. In East, West, Central and Southern Africa, the death rate from air pollution among children under five is 100 times higher than that of children in high-income countries.
“Despite advances in maternal and child health, almost 2,000 children under five die every day due to health consequences related to air pollution,” warns UNICEF Deputy Executive Director Kitty van der Heijden in a press release.
“The global emergency is undeniable,” he insists.
A falling infant mortality rate since 2000
Since 2000, the under-five mortality rate has fallen by more than 53%, thanks in part to efforts to expand access to clean energy for cooking, as well as improvements in access to health care, nutrition and greater awareness.
According to the report, several regions in Africa, Latin America and Asia are working to reduce the impact of air pollution by installing monitoring networks and implementing stricter air quality policies.
Source: BFM TV
