Research Final Draft: Deadly Air: Making it through Childhood

Research Final Draft: Deadly Air: Making it through Childhood

By Kimberly Johnson

English 213

                                                         Academic Writing Social and Natural Sciences

The childhood survival rate is dropping in the United States due to air pollutants. About 3 million tons of toxic chemicals are released into the environment in the United States alone, contributing to cancer, birth defects, immune system defects and many other serious health problems (Lang, 2007). Each year 3 million people are killed due to air pollution related exposure. Air pollution has been linked to many respiratory damaging effects. Children’s physical development and long-term health can be greatly affected by exposure to air pollutants. Those children exposed to pollutants known as ozone and particulate matter (PM) are more likely to have asthma and/or a recent asthma attack. It has also been suggested that chronic (12-month) exposure to ozone and particles is related to asthma outcomes among children in metropolitan areas throughout the US (Akinbami, 2010). The levels of air pollutants currently in the environment are affecting human health; many side effects are even starting in the womb. Air pollutants are increasing around the world. Although current programs are in place to lower air pollutants, high levels of air pollutants cause damage to children because of greater exposure, weaker immune systems and physical development.

Exposure to ozone and PM create greater damaging effects to children due to current levels of the air pollutants, PM and ozone, being too high. Ozone is a gas that cannot be seen when inhaled. It consists of three oxygen (O₃) molecules covalently bonded together making it less stable and more reactive, and thus causing many health problems to those who inhale it. The troposphere is the atmospheric level which animals and plants breathes from and is also the level where the damaging ozone air pollutant is located. However, this air pollutant is typically human-made. Ozone can come from car exhausts and industrial emissions. The process that makes the hazardous ozone air pollutant is from Nitrogen Oxide gases (NOx) and volatile organic compounds (VOC). When these two compounds come together and are exposed to the rays of the sun, they form O₃. The process is said to be anthropogenic because two of the three components that form ozone, NOx and VOC, come from industrial living (Gary, 2008).

Another harmful form of air pollutant is PM 2.5. PM 2.5 is the particle matter that has been determined by the U.S Environmental Protection Agency to be extremely dangerous. Particulate matter is formed by exhausts, aerosols, factories, power plants and other man-made systems (Boen, 2007).  PM 2.5 is a naming mechanism for identifying the particulate matter. PM 2.5 means that the particulate matter that are in the air are 2.5 microns or smaller. The problem with PM 2.5 is that they are particles that are small enough to be inhaled by humans and cause damage. PM 2.5 is inhaled deep into people’s lungs and does not come out easily making it detrimental to the health of those exposed. PM 2.5 is so easily inhaled that when PM levels are 2.5 or lower, outdoor activity becomes dangerous and even outdoor exercise should be avoided. Children tend to have greater exposure to outdoor pollutants such as ozone and PM because they are more likely to do outdoor activities. This creates greater exposure to the air pollutants Ozone and PM and also accounts for greater risk of pollutant related health problems in children than adults.

Not only is PM an outdoor pollutant, but it also poses a major health risk indoor as well. In a study of urban Syracruse, New York, it was found that there was a significantly higher risk of infant wheezing in developing infants who were exposed to PM indoors (Hunt, 2011). The American Lung Association released a report stating that about 154 million Americans, or half the country’s population, live in areas where it could be dangerous to breath. These high levels are often unknown to many inhabitants in major cities. Smaller cities have less cars and factories that produce these harmful air pollutants and also have less people to be exposed to these lower levels of pollutants. Clearly, as a result of how ozone and PM are formed, it is the major cities that have the highest probability of daily pollutant exposure and higher risk of health problems. These high levels affect a large amount of the population, many of which are unaware. With these dangerous levels indoors and outdoors, major cities are affecting children’s health due to air pollutants. It has been found that there are higher rates of wheezing, excessive phlegm and other asthma and bronchitis symptoms in children that live in and go to schools in neighborhoods with higher levels of motor vehicle pollution compared with other children in the study (Kay, 2004).

Another major concern with air pollutants is the health effects it has on the development of exposed children. Human development is a delicate and important phase. As such, developing children are affected the most from air pollutants. Some examples of obstacles children face over adults include children’s lungs not being completely developed, children tending to experience greater exposure to environmental pollutants than adults do and the higher doses of varied composition may remain in their lungs for a greater duration. Air pollution can begin effecting children as early as fetal development. It was found that levels of air pollutants such as ozone and PM have been correlated to reduce birth weight of newborns in mothers in late pregnancy (Darrow, 2011). Particulate matter has also been suggested to have a harmful, long-term effect. Exposure to particulate at the levels found in major cities worldwide can alter affective responses and impair cognition (Fonken, 2011). Altogether, the negative effects of air pollutants on pulmonary and neurological function place children at a greater risk of air pollutant-induced exacerbation of asthma for the duration of their lives (Tzivian, 2011).

Even with current knowledge, the degree of health defects that are caused to children due to air pollutants is still unknown. New research is finding more health problems as a result of ozone and PM exposure. Studies have found that many effects start with the mother breathing in the air pollutants during pregnancy. There have been multiple birth defects that have been suspected to be developed in part due to the mother’s exposure to air pollutants. Some effects that have been correlated to maternal exposure to air pollutants include inflammation, direct toxic effects to the fetus and placenta, and DNA formation errors. PM has also been directly related to maternal exposure, causing low birth weight babies, premature births and higher infant mortality rate (Shah, 2011). It has been found that certain times during pregnancy exposure to air pollutants can harm the fetus at higher levels. During the first and second month of pregnancy, exposure to outdoor air can increase the fetus’s risk to develop a cleft pallet. The levels of pollutants that increase the risk for cleft pallets are found globally, impacting a large number of pregnant women (Bing-Fang, 2008).

Regulations around the world managing the levels permitted of ozone and PM are still insufficient. Air pollutants are still affecting the health of adults and especially effecting childhood development. It is becoming increasingly difficult for pollution to be controlled. Controlling pollutants such as ozone and PM with the increasing population is strenuous. The more people there are, the more exhaust emitting vehicles, factories and products created and used daily. This also makes it difficult to keep up with current air quality standards and create future standards. More people are becoming aware of the effects air pollutants are having on citizens and demanding stricter regulations for air pollutant levels. Creating a greater push for better regulation programs to be implemented is being sought after more and more as more research is showing the effects that current levels are having on citizens especially children. Current regulations for ozone are 75 parts per billion. A new proposal was requested to make the standard of ozone allotted to be between 60 and 70 parts per billion (Shaw, 2011).  Increasing studies based on who is affected most due to air pollutants revealed that living in the low socioeconomic level is highly correlated with the proximity of the school to pollution sources (Mejía, 2011) resulting in low income children at higher risk for air pollutant health effects. Many people do not realize that lower income has been correlated to such findings involving air pollutants, along with the health affects that can occur as well.

EPA is trying to raise awareness of air pollutants such as ozone and the health effects (McKone, 2009). Concerned environmentalists are attempting to pass laws that lower the “safe” amount of ozone in the air. Tightening the standards for the amount considered safe to breathe of ozone continues to be attempted to pass into a new standard of regulation. Industries are the major component for resisting a tougher standard on ozone emission, as their companies would have to find solutions to lower the emissions. This would inevitably result in an increased financial burden on these companies that are currently barely under current standards, which would also lower profits that the companies are currently making. Through EPA studies, it has been found that the current federal standards are not healthy enough and should be changed.  Despite this evidence demonstrating the need for companies to help lower the levels of air pollutants in the air, companies do not want to have to implement costly emissions lowering equipment. EPA has found that with current levels young children are especially vulnerable, even more so than healthy adults that are outdoors exercising and working (Wertheimer, 2011). The recently proposed level of safe ozone, between 60 and 70 parts per billion, was not passed. President Barack Obama decided not to allow and pass the tougher standards to be implemented to law requiring companies to invest in methods that lower the pollutants they are currently creating.  It is clear that current levels are affecting the health of children and adults. Federal regulations have not been changed in response to current studies showing today’s standards of insufficient levels of healthy breathable air for people. There are many areas that are even falling short of the current regulation standards. Studies such as those that have been done in Texas are conforming rises in pollutant are unable to keep up with current regulation (Schade, 2006).

It is important for the standards to be raised as studies and organizations prove change is necessary. Air pollutants such as ozone and PM are continually being proven to be too high with current regulations resulting in health effects to all ages, even the unborn children. The United States however, is under hard economic times. With difficult economic issues, new regulations, despite being beneficial to citizen’s health, are ignored to avoid costing industries more money while they are struggling through a recession. Although economics is a major role in society, health should be the main factor running our nation’s air pollution standards. Ozone and PM are health causing issues that will only be resolved if people are made aware of the effects and demand stricter regulations. Everyone is affected around the world by air pollutants. Ironically, everyone is also contributing to the rise in air pollutants and is finding unhealthy air standards as acceptable. It is important to start raising awareness of the health effects of ozone and PM. People have to start demanding higher standards. It should be the peoples right to desire and make the necessary strides for everyone to breathe healthy, clean air without fear of harmful pollutants. Living a fear free lives of the quality of air people are breathing is possible by keeping up standards. Pregnant woman deal with the health effects to their young right away. Children grow running indoors and outside through harmful air pollutants, and adults are suffering from a life time of effects that can occur from ozone and PM. This cycle of health affects can stop. This lifetime exposure, which is hindering the development of the young, calls for an urgent change in standards.

 

Reference List:

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