Most People Underestimate The Seriousness Of The Health Effects Of Air Pollution
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Poor air quality can cause very serious health conditions including lung and heart problems. Air pollution has been linked to a wide variety of health issues, with different types of air pollution responsible for different problems. “Particulate pollution” (consisting of particles as opposed to gases), such as that from smoke and toxic dusts, has been consistently linked to the severest problems – such as lung cancer and other heart/lung disease mortality. The burden of air pollution-related mortalities is especially high in developing countries, especially in Asia. [1]
Breathing Problems: Breathing pollutants and ozone can lead to breathing problems even in healthy individuals. Exposure to outdoor air pollutants can exacerbate the asthma symptoms in already sick people. [2]
Premature Deaths: A regular exposure to high levels of air pollutants can shorten the life-span and can lead to premature deaths in susceptible individuals.
Cardiovascular Disease: Air pollution can increase the risk of both heart attack and stroke. Studies have shown that the incidence of cardiovascular disease was increased in people living in communities with elevated concentrations of air pollutants. [3]
Lung Cancer: Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer-related deaths in the United States. Air pollution is a modifiable risk factor for lung cancer, which means it can be prevented if exposure to pollutants is decreased. [4]
Developmental Damages: Exposure to air pollutants in children has been linked with slow and stunt development of lungs, and can reduce the lung function when adults.
COPD Worsened: A high level of air pollutants in the environment can worsen the chronic obstructive pulmonary disease symptoms (COPD) and can lead to hospitalization in such patients. [5]
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References:
[1] Cohen, A.J., et al., The global burden of disease due to outdoor air pollution. Journal of Toxicology and Environmental Health, Part A, 2005. 68(13-14): p. 1301-1307. https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/15287390590936166
[2] Guarnieri, M. and J.R. Balmes, Outdoor air pollution and asthma. The Lancet, 2014. 383(9928): p. 1581-1592. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4465283/
[3] Dockery, D.W. and P.H. Stone, Cardiovascular risks from fine particulate air pollution. N Engl J Med, 2007. 356(5): p. 511-513. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/17267912/
[4] Fajersztajn, L., et al., Air pollution: a potentially modifiable risk factor for lung cancer. Nature Reviews Cancer, 2013. 13(9): p. 674-678. https://www.nature.com/articles/nrc3572
[5] Hansel, N.N., M.C. McCormack, and V. Kim, The effects of air pollution and temperature on COPD. COPD: Journal of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease, 2016. 13(3): p. 372-379. https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.3109/15412555.2015.1089846