Environmental threats to
children's health
"Environmental pollution
weighs heavily on the health of our children", If we invest to remove
environmental health risks, for example to improve water quality or use fuels
cleaner, the health benefits will be considerable, "she added.
For example, new environmental
hazards, such as electronic and electrical waste (eg, used mobile phones) that
are not properly recycled, expose children to toxins that can lead to decreased
cognitive skills, a shortage of life and health. attention, lung lesions or
cancer. It is expected that the amount of electronic and electrical waste will
have increased by 19% between 2014 and 2018, reaching 50 million tonnes.
Climate change is increasing
temperatures and levels of carbon dioxide, which promotes pollen production,
coupled with an increase in childhood asthma rates. Globally, asthma symptoms
are currently reported in 11% to 14% of 5-year-olds and 44% of these symptoms
are related to environmental exposures. Air pollution, passive smoking, as well
as indoor mold and moisture aggravate asthma in children.
In dwellings without access to
drinking water and sanitation facilities or who are smokers because of the use
of polluting fuels, such as coal or manure, for the preparation of meals and
heating, children are at increased risk of contracting diarrheal disease or
pneumonia.
Children are also exposed to
dangerous chemicals in food, water, air and the products around them. Chemicals
such as fluoride, lead and mercury, pesticides, persistent organic pollutants
and other substances in manufactured goods end up in the food chain. And
although leaded petrol has been abandoned in almost all countries, lead is
still widely present in paints, and ingestion of lead has adverse consequences
on brain development.
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