Nearly 2,000 children die daily from health issues linked to air pollution, highlighting a critical global health crisis. According to a recent report by the US-based Health Effects Institute, air pollution was the second leading risk factor for early death in 2021, contributing to 8.1 million deaths, or 12 percent of global fatalities. This places it ahead of tobacco use and poor diet, second only to high blood pressure.
Vulnerable Victims
Children under five are particularly affected, with air pollution contributing to over 700,000 deaths annually. Over 500,000 of these deaths were linked to indoor cooking with dirty fuels like coal, wood, and dung, mostly in Africa and Asia. Pallavi Pant, head of global health at the Health Effects Institute, emphasized that these problems are solvable with appropriate interventions and policies.
Global Health Crisis
Nearly everyone on the planet breathes unhealthy air daily. Over 90 percent of air pollution-related deaths were caused by tiny airborne particles known as PM2.5, which increase the risk of lung cancer, heart disease, stroke, and diabetes. The report also indicated that air pollution's true impact might be greater, as it didn't fully account for brain health or neurodegenerative diseases.
Ozone pollution, worsened by climate change, was linked to nearly 500,000 deaths in 2021. Increasingly frequent and intense air pollution episodes, caused by wildfires and dust storms, further complicate mitigation efforts.
Pathways to Improvement
Addressing air pollution involves reducing greenhouse gas emissions and transitioning away from dirty solid fuels for cooking. Currently, over two billion people still cook using basic stoves or open fires, exposing them to harmful smoke. Since 2000, deaths among young children due to air pollution have decreased by over 50 percent, partly due to cleaner cookstoves.
In May, the International Energy Agency announced a $2.2 billion pledge from governments and companies to improve access to safer cooking methods.
