According to a new study, air pollution has caused 4.5 million deaths in 2015

LONDON , July 3 – A new European study found that 4.5 million people died prematurely from air pollution – related diseases in 2015, including nearly 240,000 children under five.

Produced by the Max Planck Institute of Mainz and the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine A new study has estimated excess deaths associated with air pollution using data on ambient (outside) concentrations of pollutants atmospheric and morbidity and mortality rates in different countries.

The study focused on the effects of ozone. particles (PM2.5), which are particles less than 2.5 microns in diameter. These small particles can penetrate deeply into the airways, increasing the risk of respiratory infections, ischemic heart disease (heart attack), chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), cerebrovascular disease (CVA) and lung cancer. .

In 2015, about 270,000 additional deaths were caused by exposure to ozone and 4.28 million by particulates, of which 727,000 died from lower respiratory tract infections, 1 , 09 million COPD, 920,000 cerebrovascular diseases, 1.5 million heart disease and 304,000 lung cancer.

The team also examined the effects of air pollution in children under five, particularly vulnerable to respiratory infections resulting from exposure to pollution.

They estimated that in 2015, out of a total of 669 million children five in the world, about 240,000 died of poor air quality as a result of lower respiratory tract infections, especially pneumonia.

In comparison, 87,000 children died of HIV / AIDS, 525,000 from diarrhea and 312,000 from malaria in the same year.

The risk of death from air pollution was particularly high among children in Africa, with children in Chad ten times higher than the global average. In some low- and middle-income countries, particularly in India and Pakistan, girls' mortality rate was also 1.2 times higher than that of boys, which could be the result of differences in nutrition and nutrition. Health care.

The origin of the particles also differs from one country to another. For example, in India, the main source of pollution is the burning of solid fuels for cooking and heating. In the United States, power plants, transportation and agriculture are the largest contributors

The indoor air of buildings, for example domestic pollution, can also harm health, but the Current study is only interested in the ambient air. the results can be found published online in the journal The Lancet Planetary Health . – AFP-Relaxnews