Earth Today | Air pollution taking a toll on children
Published:Thursday | August 14, 2025 | 12:06 AM
SOME 709,000 deaths in children under five years old were linked to air pollution in 2021.
More than half a million of that number were deaths due to household air pollution from cooking with solid fuels while more than 200,000 were linked to ambient particulate matter 2.5 (PM2.5), according to the 2024 State of Global Air report of the Health Effects Institute.
Contributors to PM2.5 include not only residential fuel use but also energy generation, industries, transportation, agriculture, windblown dust, waste combustion, and construction activities.
“Relative contributions of different sources to ambient PM2.5 vary across the globe. For example, fossil fuel combustion is a large contributor to PM2.5 levels in countries such as Singapore and South Africa; windblown dust is a major source in many countries of Africa and the Middle East; and across South Asian countries, residential fuel combustion is the largest contributor to PM2.5,” the report explained.
“The contribution of different sources to the air pollution mixture is changing as some countries restrict activities or emissions to reduce air pollution, while others continue or increase their reliance on coal and other major contributors to air pollution,” it added.
And children continue to pay the price, with the risk to their health beginning even before birth as exposure to air pollution while in the womb increases the likelihood that a baby will be born either too small or too early.
“These conditions, in turn, make babies more susceptible to lower respiratory and other serious infections,diarrhoeal diseases, brain damage and inflammation, blood disorders, and jaundice,” the report said.
“If the babies survive infancy, they remain at a higher risk for lower respiratory infections, other infectious diseases, and major chronic diseases throughout life. Exposure to air pollution during pregnancy has also been linked to miscarriage, stillbirths, and congenital disorders and anomalies,” it added.
According to the report – produced in partnership with the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and including a focus on children’s health – “the biological mechanisms linking air pollution exposure with these adverse birth outcomes are not fully understood, though the relationship is thought to involve pathways similar to those of tobacco smoking”.
“One plausible mechanism is that some pollutants, like carbon monoxide, may move across the membranes of the lungs and be carried to other parts of the body, affecting development of the placenta and the foetus. Another is that pollutants may initiate systemic inflammation or oxidative stress that affects the health of both the pregnant woman and her baby”.
But there is a silver lining.
“The global burden of disease for children under five attributable to air pollution has dropped steadily in the last few decades; since 2000, the death rate linked to air pollution in children under five has decreased by 53 per cent,” the State of Global Air report revealed.
“Improved healthcare delivery systems, water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) services, nutrition, education, and child protection have contributed to the decrease in disease burden and deaths attributable to air pollution in children,” it added.
It is time now, the report noted, for inspired action.
“Every life counts. The human toll of air pollution affects all of us, wherever we live, whatever our age. Pollution undercuts health, stability, and productivity from individuals and families up to entire societies, nations, and regions,” it said.
“By describing the magnitude of the air pollution problem and its true toll – and providing examples of actions being taken to improve air quality around the globe – we intend this report to inspire and inform efforts to reclaim and rebuild the healthy environment,” it added.