Saturday , November 16 2024

80 children die every hour due to air pollution… Are we responsible for the death of children?

Pollution is not the only cause of death in South Asia. After this, high blood pressure, food habits and tobacco are also the main reasons. The surprising thing is that if the figures of adults along with children are included, then 44 lakh people have died due to air pollution in India and China. That means 54 percent of deaths worldwide are caused by this.

Every hour 80 children aged five years and below are dying due to rising air pollution in the world. Out of the 7.09 lakh child deaths, 72 percent of them were caused by indoor pollution. But 28 percent of the deaths are caused by PM2.5.

Pollution is killing more people than malnutrition

Air pollution is the leading cause of death among children under 5 years of age after malnutrition. These include premature birth, low birth weight, asthma and lung diseases. Contaminated fuels and air pollution while cooking indoors were responsible for the deaths of children who lost their lives due to pollution.

Most child deaths occurred in Africa and Asia. In 2021, 8.1 million people died worldwide due to air pollution. That is, air pollution is the second largest killer in the world. 90% of deaths caused by air pollution are due to non-communicable diseases such as heart disease, stroke, diabetes, cancer and COPD.

Invisible poison is dissolving in the breath

The report includes data from more than 200 countries and territories around the world. More than 90% of global deaths from air pollution are caused by PM 2.5. This invisible poison dissolved in the air is causing the death of 78 lakh people every year.

The good news is that levels of these fine particles are stable or declining in many countries around the world. Globally, the average level of PM2.5 is 31.3 micrometers per cubic meter. The risk of air pollution-related diseases in children under five has decreased by 35% since 2010. Awareness of the dangers of household air pollution has increased worldwide.