Over four million kids below the age of five die every year due to environment hazards. Rapid industrialization has given way to environmental degradation. And this has added to relentless pumping of the air with greenhouse gas emissions, which not only pollute the environment, but also choke out friendly gases from the air. The result is ecological imbalance resulting in environment hazards.
Over a long time, it was thought that poverty and malnutrition are the two major killers of children. But, World Health Organization’s report stating environment hazards contributing to death advocates the concerns raised by environmentalists over a long period. Relentless industrialization and incessant deforestation have only added harmful gases to the atmosphere. Air pollution from motor vehicles further degrades the atmosphere by contributing substances like benzene, sulphur dioxide, nitrogen oxide and nitrogen dioxide. Such harmful substances when collate in the atmosphere choke clean air, which is so very essential for the survival of living organisms. Kids are more vulnerable to environment hazards. Pollution-related diseases like acute respiratory infections, asthma, leukemia, attack children the most. And to add to this, dirty contaminated water is the best breeding ground for dangerous mosquitoes, which transmit the infected larvae from one person to another. Diarrhea, dengue and chikungunya are the apparent examples these days.
WHO report warns that 30 percent of illness, disease and death in children occurs due to disease ascribed to environmental imbalance. Children in Africa and South-East Asia are more susceptible to environment hazards. Because of acute poverty and malnutrition, the immune system of such children cannot resist any kind of environmental attack. Their body gives in after a trivial fight back. It also states that few of the chemicals to which a pregnant woman is exposed, enter the uterus and transmit to the foetus. As the child grows, the chemical becomes toxin. There is every possiblity of the toxin giving birth to various kinds of allergies.
WHO expert Jenny Pronczuk, said,
This is something that intuitively we have always recognized, but we never put a number to it. For example if you look at lead exposure, the effect will be different if the child was exposed in utero because the lead of the mother goes into the bones of the child.
We are already aware of the havoc that pollution is wreaking in the form of global warming. If pollution keeps rising as it is now, that time is not far when death, disease and destruction will rule the roost. Pollution needs to be reined in by adding friends to the environment rather than enemies. All of us can take small measures like planting trees everywhere. So, that we contribute in environmental fightback against pollution. Else, the ecological imbalance will devour everything.
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Via: Reuters