PESHAWAR: The World Health Organisation in its recent report said that the Air pollution is killing seven million people across the world every year.
The report said that unhealthy diet, pollution and smoking are some of the major reasons behind the spread of diseases. “Some 90% of the world’s population, even within the four walls, is facing pollution. People around the world are exposed to pollution caused by coal, wood and dung within the walls.” The report added that it is a matter of concern because more than half of the world’s population is breathing in polluted air.
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Air pollutants are substances or particles in the air that become part of the atmosphere because of human activity. The excess of toxic gases, radiation, chemicals, solids, dust and smog, etc pollute our air and have huge impacts on human health.
According to a report on air pollution released by The State of Global Air, in 2019, about 476,000 newborns have died due to air pollution worldwide. Two-thirds of these children died from hazardous pollution from substandard cooking fuels. The report said that air pollution in sub-Saharan Africa killed about 236,000 newborns, 116,000 in India and more than 50,000 in Pakistan.
It was the first comprehensive analysis of the effects of pollution on newborns. The study also include deaths of children of less than one month of age. According to research, when a mother is exposed to high level of air pollution, her newborn may be underweight at birth. This not only increases the risk of such children dying in the first month of their lives, but also has negative impacts on their health throughout their lives, if they survive.