Pollution is killing our children

Unicef's new handbook on Children's Health and the Environment reminds us of a devastating cost of environmental pollution: the lives of our children.

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It highlights some grim facts ~ in 2021, air pollution caused more than 235,000 deaths, 19,000 of them children under five. Between 2018 and 2021, Dhaka repeatedly ranked as the second most polluted city in the world, while in 2023 Bangladesh was ranked the most polluted country globally.

Multiple sources of pollution are currently putting our children at risk. Because their organs and immune systems are still developing, children are particularly vulnerable to air pollution, which at high levels can cause pneumonia, asthma, childhood leukaemia, and neurodevelopmental disorders. Noise pollution also harms children, leading to hearing loss. The risk is particularly grave in Dhaka, one of the noisiest cities in the world,

but other major cities do not lag far behind.