The air pollution continues to kill thousands of people around the world. According to the world health Organization (WHO), nearly 600,000 children under 15 years of age die of acute respiratory infections. This alarming situation has been drawn up on Monday on the occasion of the first global conference on ” air pollution and health “, which is held until Thursday in Geneva. The air pollution is ” the new tobacco “, underlines the director general of the world health Organization (WHO), Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
On this occasion, the WHO has issued a report revealing that each day, approximately 93% of the children under 15 years of age in the world (1.8 billion children) breathe air so polluted that it seriously endangers their health and development. According to the WHO, approximately 91 % of the inhabitants of the world’s total, breathe air polluted, resulting in approximately 7 million deaths each year.
“This public health crisis is the subject of increased attention, but a critical aspect is often overlooked : how air pollution particularly affects children,” notes the WHO in the report. In 2016, the pollution of the air inside homes and outside resulted in the death of 543 000 children under 5 years of age and 52 000 children aged 5 to 15 years due to acute respiratory infections, according to the report.
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children breathe more rapidly than adults
The report also explains that pregnant women exposed to air pollution are more likely to give birth prematurely and have babies low birth weight. Air pollution also affects the neurological development and cognitive abilities of children. In addition, children who have been exposed to high levels of air pollution may be more at risk of developing chronic diseases such as cardiovascular diseases later in life.
one of The reasons why children are particularly vulnerable to the effects of atmospheric pollution is that they breathe more quickly than adults and absorb more pollutants, leading WHO. In addition, children live closer to the soil, where some pollutants reach maximum concentrations, at a time when their brains and their bodies are still developing.
The new-born and young children are also more vulnerable to indoor air pollution in homes that regularly use technology and dirty fuels for cooking, heating and lighting. During a teleconference to the press, Dr Maria Neira, director of the department of public Health of the WHO, has stated that the priority for the international community was to accelerate the transition to “clean energy,” renewable.
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