Nearly 2 million children worldwide suffer from asthma from breathing in traffic-related pollution

Nearly 2 million new cases of childhood asthma each year may be caused by traffic-related air pollutants, a problem of particular importance in large cities around the world, according to a new study published
.

"Our study found that nitrogen dioxide puts children at risk of developing asthma, a problem that is especially acute in urban areas," said Susan Anenberg, a professor of environmental and occupational health at George Washington University and co-first author of the paper.

Annenberg and her colleagues studied ground-level concentrations of nitrogen dioxide (NO2), a pollutant from vehicle exhaust, power plants and industrial sites
.

Here are some key findings from the study:

• In 2019, an estimated 1.
  85 million new cases of childhood asthma worldwide were attributed to nitrogen dioxide, two-thirds of which occurred in urban areas
  .
  

• The proportion of childhood asthma cases linked to nitrogen dioxide has recently declined in urban areas, likely due to stricter clean air regulations in high-income countries such as the United States
  .
  

• While air quality has improved in Europe and the United States, dirty air, especially nitrogen dioxide pollution, is on the rise in South Asia, sub-Saharan Africa and the Middle East
  .
  

• Childhood asthma cases associated with nitrogen dioxide pollution represent a huge public health burden in South Asia and sub-Saharan Africa
  .
  

A previous study by researchers at George Washington University found that 13 percent of the global childhood asthma burden and up to 50 percent of asthma cases in the world's 250 most populous cities were linked to nitrogen dioxide
.

Overall, the proportion of childhood asthma cases linked to nitrogen dioxide fell from 20% in 2000 to 16% in 2019
.

The researchers concluded that more work needs to be done, both in high-income countries and in parts of the world that are still struggling to curb harmful emissions from cars and other sources of nitrogen dioxide
.

A second study by Veronica Salander, Anaberg and their colleagues at George Washington University found that in 2019 alone, 1.
8 million additional deaths were linked to urban air pollution
.

"Reducing fossil fuel-powered transportation could help children and adults breathe more easily and could lead to huge health benefits, such as a reduction in childhood asthma cases and additional deaths," Annenberg said
.

article title

Long-term trends in urban NO2 concentrations and associated pediatric asthma incidence: estimates from global databases