Diseases and Health Consequences of Air Pollution: Volume 3: Air Pollution, Human Health, and the Environment

By Rama Rao Karri

Diseases and Health Consequences of Air Pollution, Volume Three, Air Pollution, Human Health, and the Environment is part of a three-volume series. This volume focuses on epidemiological studies and diseases attributed to ambient and indoor air pollutants. It opens with an overview of diseases and health consequences due to air pollution. The chapters discuss health conditions such as respiratory issues, cardiovascular diseases, hypertension and blood pressure, diabetes, nervous system, brain, cancer, stroke—cerebrovascular disease, and skin disease that are linked to exposure to indoor and outdoor air pollutants. The book also evaluates the health cost and economic burden of air pollution and offers risk management and solutions to mitigate the health implications of indoor and ambient air pollution. This book provides a single source solution and the latest information about the diseases attributed to air pollutants and their health impact. It will be a valuable reference for academicians, researchers, and students in environmental health, public health, and occupational health, as well as environmental engineers, meteorologists, epidemiologists, medical researchers, and environmental toxicologists.

• Discusses diseases attributed to air pollutants
• Explains the mechanism of air pollutants on human organs
• Examines human epidemiological studies and case studies on disease outcomes due to air pollutants
• Covers health cost and economic burden evaluation of air pollution

• Language: English
• Publisher: Academic Press
• Release date: Apr 2, 2024
• ISBN: 9780443160813

Book preview

Introduction

Mohammad Hadi Dehghani, Rama Rao Karri, Teresa Vera and Salwa Kamal Mohamed Hassan

Air pollution is considered one of the major factors affecting society’s health and the most important environmental risk factor for public health in different regions of the world. The air we breathe sustains life, but it can have dangerous effects if it is polluted. Therefore air pollution created by humans has been raised as a serious problem. During the last two decades, with the help of epidemiological studies, the effects of air pollution on human health and mortality caused by these effects have been investigated, and it has been determined that the death rate related to air pollution is increasing. According to the report of the World Health Organization (WHO, 2018), the concentrations of ambient air pollutants in 97% of cities with a population of more than 100,000 people in low- and middle-income countries are higher than the guidelines of the WHO. Still, in high-income countries, it is about 49%. With increased air pollution and decreased quality, the risk of various diseases such as stroke, cardiovascular diseases, lung cancer, and acute and chronic respiratory diseases increases.

Air pollutants may be in the form of solids, liquids, and gases produced from natural and artificial activities. Air pollution in different urban areas is mainly caused by several pollutants, including CO, PM, O3, NO2, SO2, Pb, VOCs, and PAHs. The sources of pollutants in the air are mainly industrial products, motor vehicles, power plants, forest fires, and combustion processes, as well as internal sources, including cooking stoves, heating devices, cigarette smoke, and bioaerosols.

In addition to ambient air pollution, indoor air pollutants are a serious risk factor for the health and public health of about 2 billion people who use solid fuels to cook and heat their homes. Due to the fact that most people spend their time indoors, mainly at home or at work, exposure to indoor air pollutants in the short and long terms can cause a wide range of symptoms of various diseases in residents. A wide range of dangerous compounds, including combustion products, volatile organic compounds (VOCs), inhalable suspended particles, biological substances and bioaerosols, and radionuclides, can pollute air quality inside office buildings and residences. VOCs are among the most common indoor air pollutants of great importance and are considered an indicator of indoor air quality in closed environments.

Today, air pollution has the highest burden of diseases attributed to environmental risk factors. The list of diseases attributed to air pollution has expanded to a great extent. Epidemiological studies have attributed diseases such as cancer, cardiovascular diseases, high blood pressure, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, asthma, skin diseases, urinary and kidney diseases, intestinal or inflammatory bowel diseases, ocular surface and nose, and reproductive health to air pollution. Also, new evidence from epidemiological, observational, clinical, and experimental studies established the relationship between air pollution and conditions such as diabetes, premature birth, autism, stroke, Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, and neurodevelopmental disorders.

With the increase in air pollution, the number of human deaths has increased from 3.5 million people in 1990 to 4.2 million people in 2015. The main cause of this phenomenon is the uncontrolled growth of cities, high energy demand, the increasing use of gasoline and diesel vehicles, and the globalization of industry without a plan on a global scale. According to the report (State of Global Air—2017), the highest increase in deaths related to air pollution has been observed in industrialized countries with middle and low income, and the number of these deaths may increase by more than 50% by 2050. According to the WHO (2008), 1.3 million deaths related to environmental air pollution occurred worldwide, reaching 3.7 million people in 2012. Also, in 2008, 2 million deaths were recorded due to indoor air pollution. According to the latest WHO report based on 2012 data, this number of deaths increased to 4.3 million. In 2010 more than 3.2 million deaths worldwide were attributed to exposure to ambient air pollutants and 3.5 million deaths to indoor air pollution. In 2012 7 million deaths were recorded worldwide due to the combined effects of ambient and indoor air pollution. Of the 10 million disability-adjusted life years in 2019 attributed to ambient air pollution, 62% were due to ischemic heart disease, 18% were due to stroke, 7% were due to lower respiratory infections, 7% were due to chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and 6% were due to the trachea, bronchus, and lung cancer. According to the report by the WHO, premature death due to air pollution with cardiovascular diseases, respiratory diseases, and lung cancer is 80%, 14%, and 6%, respectively.

As mentioned, the high level of ambient air pollution is harmful to people, especially those with chronic lung disease. Decrease in lung function, increase in infections, increase in respiratory symptoms, increase in asthma attacks, increase in hospitalizations, increase in mortality due to respiratory problems, and increase in the prevalence of asthma in children are its consequences. Among the air pollutants, particulate matter (PM) is one of the most common pollutants affecting public health. Epidemiological studies have shown that acute and chronic exposure to air pollution, especially high levels of PM2.5, increases the risk of acute cardiovascular diseases. Short-term exposure within a few hours to a few days can lead to myocardial infarction, stroke, and exacerbation of heart failure. Also, nanoparticles can increase the risk of stroke, Parkinson’s disease, and neurological disorders. About 3% of deaths from cardiopulmonary diseases in adults, 5% of respiratory tract cancers, and about 1% of deaths from acute respiratory infections in children in urban areas have been related to PM.

Exposure to PM and O3 increases cardiovascular, vascular, and respiratory complications; mortality; and disability. Epidemiological studies have shown a positive relationship between cardiovascular diseases and the presence of NO2, CO, and PM. Exposure to NO2 during infancy increases the risk of developing asthma in children. Research shows that exposure to air pollution caused by traffic during infancy is associated with reduced lung function and the occurrence of chronic respiratory problems in susceptible children. Some air pollutants, such as SO2 in urban centers, can increase the hospitalization of children in hospitals. Also, exposure to pollutants at home can increase or aggravate asthma symptoms. Indoor air pollutants such as formaldehyde and benzene can cause leukemia. Also, the pollutants caused by cooking in the kitchen have hazardous health effects on homemakers.

Therefore air pollution not only endangers human and public health but also increases health and treatment costs. According to the report of the World Bank, diseases caused by air pollution cause huge losses to the world economy every year. It is predicted that by 2060, air pollution will cause premature death of 9 million people annually. The annual welfare costs associated with these premature deaths will cost the global economy $18–25 trillion.

This book includes sections on the effects and mechanism of air pollutants on human organs, diseases and epidemiology studies, health cost, and economic burden evaluation of air pollution. This book can provide a single source solution to academicians and researchers with the latest information about the diseases attributed to air pollutants (cardiovascular, blood pressure, respiratory, nervous system and brain, cancer, skin, diabetes, human fertility, and stroke-cerebrovascular diseases). Therefore academicians, students of environmental health, public health, occupational health, environmental engineers, meteorologists, epidemiologists, medical researchers, and environmental toxicologists will find the book valuable reference material.

Finally, our heartfelt thanks to all the reputable authors, elite reviewers, and editorial team of Elsevier, who handhold us in every stage of conceptualization, proposal revision, initiation, operation, and completion of the book, including the production process.

Chapter 1

Overview of diseases and health consequences due to air pollution

Rama Rao Karri¹, ², Gobinath Ravindran³, Nabisab Mujawar Mubarak¹, Balram Ambade⁴, Mohammad Hadi Dehghani⁵, ⁶, Salwa Kamal Mohamed Hassan⁷ and Teresa Vera⁸,    ¹Petroleum and Chemical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Universiti Teknologi Brunei, Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei Darussalam,    ²INTI International University, Nilai, Negeri Sembilan, Malaysia,    ³Department of Civil Engineering, SR University, Warangal, Telangana, India,    ⁴Department of Chemistry, National Institute of Technology, Jamshedpur, Jharkhand, India,    ⁵Department of Environmental Health Engineering, School of Public Health, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran,    ⁶Center for Solid Waste Research, Institute for Environmental Research, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran,    ⁷Air Pollution Research Department, Environment and Climate Change Research Institute, National Research Centre, Dokki, Giza, Egypt,    ⁸EUPHORE Lab, Fundación CEAM, Paterna, Spain

Abstract

Air pollution is a significant public health concern, causing various illnesses and health consequences, including respiratory and cardiovascular disorders, neurological impacts, reproductive and developmental effects, and cancer. Age and gender, genetics and preexisting diseases, socioeconomic variables, and environmental factors are all risk factors for air pollution-related health impacts. Reducing emissions from industrial and transportation sources, boosting energy efficiency, and expanding the use of renewable energy sources can all help to reduce air pollution and improve public health. Healthcare practitioners and public health authorities should also raise awareness and educate vulnerable groups, such as children, the elderly, and those with preexisting health disorders, about the hazards of air pollution. Despite continued attempts to monitor and regulate air pollution, it remains a serious worldwide health risk. Therefore, this article suggests that it is crucial to prioritize and invest in initiatives that minimize air pollution and preserve public health. The findings also suggest that governments and regulatory agencies should prioritize and enhance efforts to monitor and decrease air pollution levels nationally and globally. It also suggests that it requires a collaborative and sustained effort from all stakeholders to address growing health implications due to air pollution.

Keywords

Air pollution; illnesses and health consequences; socioeconomic factors; environmental factors; monitor and regulations; policymakers

1.1 Introduction

Air pollution is a complicated mixture of gases, particulate matter (PM), and other hazardous compounds that can have various negative health consequences.¹,² Various human activities, including industrialization, transportation, energy production, and natural phenomena, such as wildfires and volcanic eruptions, generate it.³,⁴ Air pollution is a severe environmental issue affecting millions globally, particularly in densely populated cities with heavy