Statement on Air Pollution and Health

Abstract

Millar and Wright discuss the negative effect of air pollution on health. In 2016, 91% of the world's population lived in places that did not meet the World Health Organization's (WHO) air quality guidelines. One air pollutant of immense concern is atmospheric particulate matter (PM) which is the sum of the complex combination of solid and liquid particles of organic and inorganic substances suspended in the air. Chronic exposure to these particles increases the risk of developing multiple diseases and conditions. There is evidence that air pollution affects human health at every stage of life, with the most vulnerable populations being the young, elderly and health-compromised.