Air pollution is becoming a major concern. This has been caused due to a variety of factors, including not only industrialisation or carbon emissions, but also the ever-increasing traffic in all countries across the world. Now, a study has revealed how dangerous the noxious smoke coming out of traffic is for future generations. Researchers at George Washington University in the US have claimed that traffic pollution can cause asthma in about two million children worldwide, every year. This study’s findings are published in the journal ‘The Lancet Planetary Health.’ Let us inform you that air pollution can impair our body parts and function. Air pollution also causes COPD i.e. Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease and Bronchial asthma.
Asthma is a chronic disease in which there is inflammation in the pulmonary airways. Asthma causes breathing issues, chest pain, coughing, and wheezing. The major cause of an asthma attack is mucus in the body and a shortened trachea, but many other external factors can cause an asthma attack to occur suddenly. Patients are advised to use inhalers in this case.
What experts say?
According to Professor of Environmental and Occupational Health at George Washington University and co-author of this study Susan Anenberg, their research indicated that nitrogen dioxide increases the incidence of asthma in children, a disease that is particularly prevalent in urban settings.
How did the study happen?
Susan Anenberg and her colleagues looked at nitrogen dioxide (NO2) levels in the ground near automobiles, power stations, and industrial facilities. In addition, they tracked new asthma cases in children from 2019 to 2020. During this, it was also found that due to NO2, the cases of asthma in children in the year 2000 were 20%, which came down to 16 percent in the year 2019. This indicates that clean air has helped youngsters in various parts of Europe and America, particularly those who live near busy streets and industrial sites. As a result, high-income countries must continue to work to reduce NO2 emissions more effectively.
What can be done?
In another study, Susan Anenberg and her colleagues found that 1.8 million deaths in 2019 could be linked to urban air pollution. It was also revealed that 86% of adults and children living in cities fall ill due to living in an environment with a higher level of particulate matter than the levels set by the World Health Organization (WHO). We can help children and the elderly breathe healthier air by lowering fossil fuel transportation, according to Anenberg. With this, asthma and its death can also be reduced in children. Along with this, the emission of greenhouse gas will also be reduced, which can lead to a healthy environment.
The outcomes of the study
According to this study, nitrogen dioxide (NO2) was the cause of new asthma cases in an estimated 18.5 lakh youngsters in 2019. Two-thirds of these were in urban areas. Asthma cases linked to NO2 in children have decreased as a result of rigorous air quality regulations in the United States and other developed countries. Despite advances in air quality in Europe and the United States, countries in South Asia, Sub-Saharan Africa, and the Middle East have had poor air quality, owing primarily to NO2. Asthma in children caused by NO2 has become a major public health issue in South Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa.
