Up to 66,000 new cases of childhood asthma - equivalent to 11 per cent of all cases - could be prevented each year if European countries complied with the World Health Organisation's (WHO) air quality guidelines at particulates(PM2.5). In addition, as many as 190,000 new cases could be prevented each year if air pollution were reduced to the current lowest pollution levels in the countries, according to the new study by the Barcelona Institute for Global Health. These are the key findings of the study, which has now been published in the European Respiratory Journal (2019: source).
"The clear connection between new cases of asthma and air pollution by particulates, nitrogen dioxide or soot brings to light that it is worthwhile to consistently analyse and check both the outdoor air and the indoor air," says indoor air expert Dr Daniel Lehmann from Corant GmbH. The physicist developed the air analyser air-Q, which specifically measures and analyses pollutants in indoor air. The device is intended to alleviate and prevent allergies.
For study on childhood asthma: data from 63.4 million children analysed
For the study, ISGlobal had analysed data from 63.4 million children in 18 European countries. Specifically, census data from 18 European countries and incidence rates of childhood asthma from the Global Burden of Disease Study database were used. Exposure to the different pollutants was calculated using a harmonised European statistical model (land use regression) based on several measurements in Europe.
In addition to particulates, the effects of nitrogen dioxide (NO2) and soot (carbon black) were also studied. The attributable percentage of new asthma cases is slightly lower for these two air pollutants, but still significant: 23 percent for nitrogen dioxide and 15 percent for carbon black.
However, compliance with the WHO air quality guideline for nitrogen dioxide could prevent only 0.6 percent of new asthma cases, according to the study. "We therefore recommend that these levels be updated and lowered to better protect children's health," says David Rojas-Rueda, one of the scientists who led the study at ISGlobal.
Figures for Germany: Significantly fewer asthma cases
For Germany alone, the figures of the Children's Asthma Study mean: With reduced nitrogen dioxide levels in the air, almost 17,000 new cases of allergic asthma in children between 1 and 14 years of age could be avoided in this country. For particulatesit is more than 26,000 and for soot 11,000 cases.
The study and the large number of illnesses show that it is worth fighting for clean air. The WHO's initiatives to lower the limits for nitrogen dioxide and particulatesagain are clearly a step in the right direction. Because the health, especially of children, is too valuable not to act sustainably. There is much to be done.
(Image: pixabay / Bob Williams)
