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Most of the world’s population breathes air with more PM2.5 pollution than recommended by the WHO. This particularly fine particulate matter lodges in our airways and sometimes also in our bloodstream, with an impact on health that is reflected in life expectancy.
Three times more than alcohol, seven times more than HIV and AIDS: air pollution subtracts 2.3 years from our average life and is compared to the impact that tobacco has on global health. This is the calculation of the Lifetime Air Quality Index, which is published annually by the University of Chicago. “Pollution is the greatest external risk for life expectancy on the planet”, warn the text.
The study is based on the presence of PM2.5 particles in the air, the name given to pieces of suspended matter less than 2.5 millimeters in diameter. Emitted by motor vehicles, industry and also fires, they are smaller than the diameter of a hair and can enter our respiratory tract and even reach the bloodstream.
Being exposed to this type of particles increases the prevalence of respiratory and cardiovascular diseases and, consequently, impacts on life expectancy. In the most polluted places, such as some parts of India, Pakistan or Nigeria, the projected life years are shortened by more than four years.
In Latin America, although the vast majority of the population breathes with pollution that exceeds the limits considered healthy, the impact on life expectancy is about 11 months. However, there are some hot spots where the pollution is on par with the worst spots in India or China, two of the most polluted countries in the world.
“The most polluted region in Latin America is the city of Mixco, Guatemala, where the average pollution was 50.3 µg/m3 in 2021, 10.1 times the WHO limit. If the region cleaned its air to meet the guideline permanently, residents would see a 4.4-year increase in their life expectancy,” the report reads.
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