Air pollution caused 8.1 million deaths worldwide in 2021, becoming the second leading cause of death after high blood pressure. An independent report estimates that virtually everyone on the planet breathes harmful levels of pollution.
T he 5th edition of “ State of Global Air ” confirms the dramatic impact of air pollution on human health. Based on 2021 data, this report which has just been published by the independent American research institute Health Effects Institute (HEI), in collaboration with UNICEF, provides a damning finding .
Thus, deaths are counted in the millions and air pollution produces harmful effects on health which now exceed those of tobacco and an unbalanced diet .
99% of the world population exposed to PM 2.5 fine particles
Air pollution was the cause of 8.1 million deaths worldwide in 2021, but also disabling chronic diseases affecting tens of millions of individuals.
The pollutants incriminated include outdoor fine particulate matter (PM2.5), ozone (O3) and nitrogen dioxide (NO2). Globally, more than 90% of deaths due to air pollution, or 7.8 million people, are attributed to PM2.5, both ambient and household.
These fine particles, less than 2.5 micrometers in diameter, enter the lungs and bloodstream, leading to an increased risk of diseases such as heart disease, stroke, diabetes, lung cancer. and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).
PM2.5 air pollution comes mainly from the combustion of fossil fuels and biomass in sectors such as transportation, housing, coal-fired power plants, industrial activities and wildfires.
Ozone killed nearly 490,000 people in 2021
In 2021, long-term exposure to ozone caused an estimated 489,518 deaths worldwide, including 14,000 from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, primarily in the United States, where the concentration is higher than in other high-income countries .
As the planet continues to warm due to climate change, regions with high levels of nitrogen dioxide (NO2) (from vehicle exhaust, a major source) can expect see also increase ozone levels.
2,000 children under 5 die every day due to air pollution
Children under 5 years old are very vulnerable , with multiple effects such as premature births, low birth weight, increased asthma and other lung diseases.
In 2021, 700,000 deaths of children under 5 were attributed to air pollution, the second risk factor after malnutrition . 500,000 of these deaths were linked to household air pollution (indoor cooking), mainly in Africa and Asia.
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Better in spite of everything
There is some good news, however: since 2000, the number of deaths due to household air pollution has decreased by 36% worldwide. In France, the number of deaths attributable to PM2.5 particles fell from 31,200 in 1990 to 13,400 in 2021, and the adjusted death rate per 10,000 people fell from 54 to 20.2.
As for children under 5, their mortality rate linked to air pollution has fallen by 53%, “ largely due to efforts to expand access to clean energy for cooking, improved access to health care and nutrition, and greater awareness of the harmful effects of exposure to household air pollution , ” the report said.
