Air Pollution Kills Millions Every Year: Study

Do you know the report on air pollution presented by the WHO? The report is not good at all. According to the report-

• More than 80% people who live in urban areas are exposed to air pollution that exceeds the limits of WHO’s air quality levels.
• Although all regions of the world are affected, low-income cities are the worst victims.
• As a result of increased air pollution, the risk of numerous diseases like stroke, heart disease, lung cancer, acute and chronic respiratory diseases, asthma etc. have increased tremendously.

Air is an important element of our environment. And our air is seriously polluted by smoke. We make fires to cook food. We make bricks, melt tar for road construction and to do many other things. Fire creates smoke and pollute the air. Railway engines and powerhouses create smoke by burning coal and oil. Mills and factories also belch smoke a lot. On the other hand, motor vehicles such as cars, buses, and trucks use petrol and diesel oil. These too emit smoke. All these kinds of smoke pollute the air.

Outdoor and household air pollution all over the world kills over 5.5 million people prematurely each year. Most of the deaths occur in the two largest populated countries China and India. They account for nearly 55% of the total deaths. A new study has found it. 

The researchers said that In China, 1.6 million people died of air pollution in 2013. In India, it was 1.4 million. The number of deaths will increase tremendously if appropriate measures are not taken, said the international team of researchers from the US, Canada, China and India.

The Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) presented the findings on 12 Feb 2016, Times of India and Time magazine reported it on the same day.

Air pollution mostly caused by burning wood and coal which are used in power plants and industrial manufacturing is very dangerous for man's health. Vehicle fumes and smoke created by burning coal, oil and wood release small particles which cause air pollution is standing as the fourth highest risk factor for death all over the world.

Burning biomass, wood and dung for cooking is the main cause of air pollution in India while burning coal is the main factor of air pollution in China. Only outdoor air pollution killed 366,000 people in 2013 in China. It is predicted that the number may rise to 990,000 to 1.3 million in 2030.

The other countries where the number of deaths created by air pollution has increased are Pakistan, Japan and Brazil.

The findings of the research did not surprise anybody because earlier research showed that outdoor air pollution caused over 3 million deaths every year and it suggested that the number would be double by 2050.

Some countries are taking several actions to reduce air pollution but the actions are not enough to reduce the number of premature deaths caused by air pollution worldwide.

According to the research, nearly 200,000 people in Europe and more than 80,000 people in the US die of air pollution every year.

So, nobody can hide or run from pollution. But everybody can get benefits if air quality is improved