Dirty, grimy, polluted tree

Now, don’t be mad at us for messing up the ever-so-soothing Fool’s Garden number. You see, we can’t help it. You feel the sky isn’t as smogged as it used to be. The largest ever CNG based public transport programme is in place, commercial vehicles older than 15 years have been phased out, and power plants are under strict jurisdiction. You are convinced air pollution is under control. And ah yes, the right to wholesome environment has been incorporated into a fundamental right to life by our Constitution. So, you are safe as far as air pollution goes.
Right?
Wrong.
We are sad – and happy – to burst your bubble. Sad because we have lost our gains and after a
short respite, air pollution curve has turned upward. Happy because we are using this platform to wake you up and make you smell the coffee. Don’t want to believe us? Here, some shocking proof:

Good Ozone Vs Bad Ozone
● The ozone layer 10 - 30 miles above the earth that
protects life on earth from the sun's harmful ultraviolet
rays is GOOD.

● Closer to earth, BAD ozone is an air pollutant that can be
harmful. It is created and hangs around in the layer of
air near the ground

“Whatever limited data that we have on ozone levels in
Delhi show the concentrations exceed the safe limit. This is
the reason there is an increased severity and frequency of
symptoms among asthmatics. They are getting more sensitive
to allergens because even a smaller dose of allergens
triggers the attack in high ozone level. Ozone also induces
asthma. Children growing up in high ozone regions have
smaller lungs than others,” he adds.

And now the most alarming bit.
Do you know which section of the
population is the most affected?

	Children.
	Wondering why children are the soft targets?\| They spend more time outdoors than adults. They are active outdoors during midday when air pollution levels tend to be higher. They have significantly higher oxygen demands so their respiration rates are higher and they inhale more air per unit of body weight than adults. Because of their size, their breathing zone is lower, so they inhale more polluted air. The diameters of their airways are smaller and hence, most susceptible to inflammation caused by pollution. Their lungs are still developing and hence, more vulnerable. Their immune defense is immature and as a result less active against inhaled pathogens.

	An adult in one day exhales air that can fill 3000 balloons. The number is higher for children! The faster you breathe the more pollutants you take into your lungs

Alright, so we live in a polluted environment. Our air is not
as clean as it should be for the benefit of human health. But
what’s the big deal? We’ll probably have weaker lungs?

Cancer does not have any ‘one cause’. Numerous studies
have assessed the causes to be genetic susceptibility,
environment factors and lifestyle. But it is an established fact
that the strategy to reduce cancer must address reduction
of environmental risk factors – and air pollution is one
crucial factor.

“We’re on the tip of a cancer iceberg,” says
Dr Vinod Raina, Head, Medical Oncology,
Dr B R Ambedkar Institute – Rotary Cancer
Hospital, All India Institute of Medical
Sciences, Delhi. “If this deadly combination
of smoking and pollution continues in large
parts of India, we will see an exponential
rise in the incidence of lung cancer in the
next 15 to 20 years,” he adds.

It is critical for us to understand that air pollution does not
cause just respiratory diseases. Studies are now looking at
more diverse health end points – diabetes, cardiovascular and eye disorders, cellular changes, premature deaths and cancer.Yes, cancer.

What studies show:
Strong and consistent association between diabetes
prevalence and Particulate Matter (PM) 2.5 concentrations:
For every 10μg/m3 increase in PM 2.5 exposure, there was
a 1 per cent increase in diabetes prevalence.
(Diabetes Care, 2011)

PM 2.5 exposure within approximately 60 min associated
with increased PVC counts in healthy individuals.

Chittranjan National Cancer Institute (CNCI), Kolkata, an autonomous body under
Ministry of Health and Family Welfare carried out a study to assess the respiratory
health status of Delhi school children chronically exposed to ambient air pollution.

Sample group: 11,628, school-going children (7757 boys and 3871 girls) from 36 Delhi schools in different seasons.

Control group: 4536 children (2950 boys and 1586 girls) from 15 schools of rural West Bengal and two schools from Khirsu and Kotdwar, Uttaranchal.

Study Details:
Delhi's children had 1.8 times more upper respiratory symptoms (sinusitis, running or stuffy nose, sneezing, sore throat common cold with fever)

and 2-times lower respiratory symptoms (frequent dry cough, sputum-producing cough, wheezing breath, breathlessness on exertion.

The symptoms were more common in children during winter when PM 10 level in air is highest in a year, and lowest during monsoon when particulate air pollution level is lowest, suggesting a positive association with particulate air pollution.

Results showed reduction of lung function in 43.5 per cent schoolchildren of Delhi compared with 25.7 per cent in control group.

There are many detailed trials being conducted across geographies that show a direct linkage between air pollution and ailments in children. We spoke to Delhi-based Dr Sanjeev Bagai, a practicing pediatrician, to understand the impacts of air pollution.

Q. Is there a specific range of illnesses particular to age groups?

A. Children who stay closer to major highways, main roads and dust filled environment have a higher incidence of respiratory infections, wheezing, asthma, bronchitis, etc. The most vulnerable group is that of children up to the age of five years.

Q. Why are children under five the most affected?

A. You see, the anatomy of a child is not fully developed and therefore, their airways are most susceptible to pollution.

This is not to say that teenagers are not at a greater risk.

Q. What steps need to be taken?

A. Well, the general preventive measures include avoiding fast food, cold drinks, fish, nuts, chocolates; and exposure to
smoke and strong odours. An acute precipitating cause, for example food allergy infections, need to be treated with
antibiotics while wheezing needs to be treated with bronchodilators.

The ominous evidences cannot be ignored any more. We need to act urgently to reduce deadly health risks caused by air pollution to the society and its children. Effects – both short and long term – are staring at us and it is crucial we integrate health issues and make air quality management more relevant to public health.

The time is just right . Preparations for the 12th five year plan are on, air quality monitoring programme is being expanded, clean air action plans are being initiated, and post-2010 emissions regulations for vehicles are being framed.

Most importantly, medical practitioners, till now studiously careful about what they said in public platforms, have come to the fore with facts and their fatal consequences. It really is now or never.

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Dirty, grimy, polluted tree

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Dirty, grimy, polluted tree