Air Pollution and Asthma

According to the Government of Canada, air pollution prematurely kills an estimated 5,900 Canadians each year. Recent studies show that close to eight per cent of all non-traumatic mortality in Canadian cities is attributable to air pollution.

Dangerous one-two punch

Burning fossil fuels is the main cause of both air pollution and climate change, and health experts have concluded that climate change will actually make air pollution an even greater health threat - unless fossil fuel emissions are drastically reduced.

Studies also show that warmer temperatures drive up pollen counts, which worsen symptoms of allergy sufferers. Researchers have found that increased levels of carbon dioxide not only cause more weeds to grow but also encourage each individual weed to release more pollen.

Ground level ozone

Ground level ozone is the nasty cousin of stratospheric ozone. Whereas stratospheric ozone (the "ozone layer") protects plants and animals from ultraviolet radiation, ground level ozone is a primary ingredient of smog. Higher temperatures increase ground level ozone production - thus climate change will intensify urban smog.

Ozone is toxic at low concentrations and deadly at high concentrations. It bursts cell membranes in the lungs, and as cellular fluids build up, breathing becomes more rapid, shallow and painful. The elderly and children are especially vulnerable, and ozone can lead to lifelong damage as lungs stiffen and scar. Ozone also sensitizes the airways to irritants and other allergens. Elevated ozone levels mean more hospital admissions for asthma, respiratory disease and acute respiratory disorders.

Toxic Brew

Air pollution from burning fossil fuels produces many other compounds that hurt our health: carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxide, sulphur dioxide, volatile organic compounds, and small airborne particulates. They can cause impaired lung function, shortness of breath, wheezing, asthma attacks and premature death.

Air pollution is also the primary culprit behind rising levels of asthma. A recently published 10-year study of Southern California communities showed that children living in smoggy areas were three to four times more likely to develop asthma than those living in cleaner areas.

In Canada, rates of childhood asthma have risen dramatically. From 1978 to 1995, the percentage of children with asthma increased from 2.5 per cent to 11.2 per cent of children.

By reducing our use of coal, oil and natural gas, we can save thousands of lives and lessen the threat to human health of both climate change and air pollution.

More information:

Taking our Breath Away: The Health Effects of Air Pollution and Climate Change

Climate Change and Health: Research Report