[ad_1]
LinkBack URL About LinkBacks Digg this Thread!
NEW YORK (Reuters Health) – A recent study reveals that air pollution is now more deadly than smoking. It kills up to 8.8 million people a year worldwide.
Researchers say that soot particles pumped by vehicles, factories and power plants are the main cause of polluted air.
It is estimated that air pollution caused 64,000 deaths in the UK in 2015, of which 17,000 were due to cardiovascular disease.
Other cases included cancer, diabetes, and chronic lung diseases.
The study found that life expectancy in the United Kingdom decreased by 1.5 years among those who died as a result of air pollution.
But the British have not been as deeply affected as their European neighbors, including Germany, Italy and France.
The study compiled computer simulations with new information on population density, risk factors and causes of death.
Air pollution could cause 8.8 million deaths each year worldwide, double the number of deaths in Europe compared to previous forecasts.
According to the World Health Organization, smoking is responsible for 7.2 million deaths a year.
Researchers at the Medical Center of Mainz University in Germany have now called for tighter controls on air pollution.
They say their findings confirm the need to move to cleaner, renewable energy.
Professor Thomas Munzel said: "The link between air pollution and cardiovascular disease, as well as respiratory diseases, is well established."
"It causes damage to the blood vessels by increasing oxidation, causing an increase in blood pressure, diabetes, stroke, heart attacks and heart failure," he said. .
"These results provide further evidence that air pollution significantly increases the risk of premature death due to heart and circulatory disease, suggesting that its effect may be greater than expected," said Professor Metin Afkiran of the British Heart Foundation.
"Air pollution is clearly a major problem all over Europe, where our legal limits are less stringent than those recommended by the World Health Organization," he said. .
[ad_2]
Source link
