An investigation into the impact of global pollution on public health and published by The Lancet magazine, revealed that toxic air, water and soil are responsible for the premature death of 9 million people each year, more deaths than the number of people killed by war, hunger, malaria and AIDS.
The study. which extracted data from the Global Burden of Disease project of the World Health Organization (WHO), warned that contamination is so dangerous that it “threatens the continued survival of human societies “, accounting for 16% of deaths throughout the world. world, 15 times more than deaths from war and conflict, and three times more than deaths from AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria combined.
Most deaths are from pollution-related illnesses , such as heart disease, stroke, and lung cancer; It occurs in developing countries, especially, where rapid industrialization combined with lax regulations translates into greater exposure to toxic air, water and soil pollution for residents.
The United States and Japan top the dangerous list with the highest number of pollution deaths (such as those related to fossil fuels and chemical pollution).
The data
According to the work, air pollution caused by automobiles or industrial activities is the worst of all : it is responsible for around 4.5 million deaths each year, almost half of all pollution-related deaths, a figure that according to the experts will not stop increasing in the coming years. Deaths in Southeast Asia are expected to double by 2050.
Another 2.9 million deaths come from indoor air pollution from wood stoves, which are still used by households for heating and cooking.
The toxic water is responsible for 1.8 million deaths every other year; and it is that water saturated with sewage, for example, is related to diseases such as cholera or parasitic infections.
Pollution in the workplace , which is prevalent in industrialized countries, also accounts for around 800,000 deaths each year and was associated with diseases such as pneumoconiosis in coal workers, bladder cancer in dye workers, and asbestosis, lung cancer, mesothelioma and other cancers in workers exposed to asbestos (asbestos).
The researchers warned that even the 9 million death toll from pollution could be an underestimate of the actual number of deaths, as pollution grows every year, and its link to certain diseases, such as dementia or diabetes, is an area little researched yet by the scientific community.
Also, the unknown impact of hundreds of widely used chemicals and pesticides on the environment could increase the total number of pollution-related deaths.
Children, a population at risk
The smallest are the most prone to diseases associated with pollution, since exposure during key periods of the fetus can make them sick, create a disability and even cause death (even small doses of pollutants).
The study also linked pollution deaths to economic losses, finding that, on average, pollution-related deaths led to losses of $ 4.6 trillion annually, the equivalent of 6.2% of global GDP.
“Pollution is much more than an environmental challenge: it is a deep and pervasive threat that affects many aspects of human health and well-being. It deserves the full attention of international leaders, civil society, health professionals and individuals. from around the world “, explains Philip Landrigan, co-author of the work.
Referencia: The Lancet Commission on pollution and health. The Lancet.
DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(17)32345-0
