Shanghai: Chronic air pollution reduces the world’s life expectancy by more than two years per person. According to a study published on Tuesday, the effects are comparable to smoking and far more serious than HIV / AIDS and terrorism.
The University of Chicago’s Energy Policy Institute (EPIC) measures PM2.5 levels, stating that more than 97% of the world’s population lives in areas where air pollution exceeds recommended levels, according to the latest Air Quality Living Index. Used satellite data for. Airborne particles that damage the lungs.
If the global PM2.5 level is reduced to 5 micrograms per cubic meter recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO), life expectancy is said to increase by an average of 2.2 years.
Air pollution has been ignored as a public health issue, and the study warned that there was still insufficient funding to address the issue.
“Now that we have a better understanding of the effects of pollution, there are stronger cases where the government prioritizes it as an urgent policy issue,” said Christa Hasenkopf, director of the EPIC Air Quality Index.
Residents of South Asia have lost an estimated five years of life as a result of smog, and India has accounted for about 44% of the world’s increased air pollution since 2013, the study said.
Chinese residents may live an average of 2.6 years longer if they reach WHO standards, but life expectancy is about 2 years from 2013, when the “pollution war” that reduces PM2.5 by about 40% began. It has been improved.
EPIC calculations were based on previous studies showing that sustained exposure to an additional 10 micrograms of PM2.5 per cubic meter reduced life expectancy by almost a year.
According to a pollution data survey released earlier this year, no country was able to meet the WHO 5 microgram standard in 2021.
