Air Pollutants Can be More Harmful for Children than Adults

Air pollution isn't good for anyone, but children are even more susceptible to the harmful effects from pollutants than adults. Children's bodies are not identical to an adults and therefore, care should be taken when dealing with children. A child actually breathes in more air per body weight than an adult does, and therefore can receive a larger dose of pollutants. This is a big health issue that shouldn't be overlooked. For this reason, children living in polluted areas should be monitored carefully for health problems.

Even with this said, many children either don't show symptoms or don't recognize them. It is believed that they could be too busy playing to complain about a cough or sneeze, or they don't want to stop their activities just because their eyes sting from a smoggy day. This could be a problem because if they continue to be exposed to pollutants, for whatever reason, their lungs could be getting damaged without anyone realizing it. Asthma and bronchitis are two conditions that children can suffer from due to pollutants in the air. If pollution is bad enough to damage cells in the lungs early in childhood, then the lungs might not be able to finished growing completely and the children could suffer from a number of problems later in life. Parents and teachers need to be mindful of these issues and limit a child's exposure on days where pollution is high.

One of the worst contributors to health problems is ozone. This is the main ingredient in smog and is worse on sunny days. Health agencies have set standard levels in parts per million that are potentially harmful to people. Symptoms of ozone exposure are sore and weepy eyes, trouble breathing, runny nose, sore and scratchy throat and sometimes coughing. Continued exposure to ozone can cause damage to the cells in the lungs, which will have even greater effects in a child's lungs. There can be permanent damage to the lungs if the person is unable or unwilling to get away from the pollution. If exposure is only limited to a short time, the lungs will most likely be able to repair most of the damage. In addition to ozone, there is an entire menu of chemicals in air pollution, but chemicals are not the only problem. There is also particulate matter in the air.

Particles that are inhaled can settle in the lungs. The particles can come from things like the rubber on tires, brake dust, chimneys and smoke stacks and car exhaust. The two groups of people most sensitive to particulate matter are the elderly and children. Particles can be responsible for respiratory as well as heart trouble. For children, destruction of the lungs, as with ozone, can result in some permanent problems or permanent loss in the growth of the lungs. Children who live in very polluted cities should restrict their outdoor activity and parents should pay attention to the health warnings and watch for symptoms of exposure. Unfortunately, there isn't too much that can be done, except for moving out of the polluted area. There are medications to treat the various illnesses, but until the child is removed from the source, the problems will continue.