Heating a house by burning substances such as kerosene, wood, and coal can contaminate the air inside the house. Ash and smoke make breathing difficult, and they can stick to walls, food, and clothing.
Naturally-occurring radon gas, a cancer-causing material, can also build up in homes. Radon is released through the surface of the Earth. Inexpensive systems installed by professionals can reduce radon levels.
Some construction materials, including insulation, are also dangerous to people's health. In addition, ventilation, or air movement, in homes and rooms can lead to the spread of toxic mold. A single colony of mold may exist in a damp, cool place in a house, such as between walls. The mold's spores enter the air and spread throughout the house. People can become sick from breathing in the spores.
People experience a wide range of health effects from being exposed to air pollution. Effects can be broken down into short-term effects and long-term effects.
Short-term effects, which are temporary, include illnesses such as pneumonia or bronchitis. They also include discomfort such as irritation to the nose, throat, eyes, or skin. Air pollution can also cause headaches, dizziness, and nausea. Bad smells made by factories, garbage, or sewer systems are considered air pollution, too. These odors are less serious but still unpleasant.
Long-term effects of air pollution can last for years or for an entire lifetime. They can even lead to a person's death. Long-term health effects from air pollution include heart disease, lung cancer, and respiratory diseases such as emphysema. Air pollution can also cause long-term damage to people's nerves, brain, kidneys, liver, and other organs. Some scientists suspect air pollutants cause birth defects. Nearly 2.5 million people die worldwide each year from the effects of outdoor or indoor air pollution.
People react differently to different types of air pollution. Young children and older adults, whose immune systems tend to be weaker, are often more sensitive to pollution. Conditions such as asthma, heart disease, and lung disease can be made worse by exposure to air pollution. The length of exposure and amount and type of pollutants are also factors.
Effects On Humans
People experience a wide range of health effects from being exposed to air
pollution. Effects can be broken down into short-term
effects and long-term effects.
Short-term effects, which are temporary,
include illnesses such as pneumonia or bronchitis.
They also include discomfort such as irritation to
the nose, throat, eyes, or skin. Air pollution can also cause
headaches, dizziness, and nausea. Bad
smells made by factories, garbage,
or sewer systems are considered air
pollution, too. These odors are
less serious but still unpleasant.
Long-term effects of air pollution can last for years or for an
entire lifetime. They can even lead to a person's death. Long-term health
effects from air pollution include heart
disease, lung cancer,
and respiratory diseases such
as emphysema. Air
pollution can also cause long-term damage to people's nerves, brain, kidneys, liver, and other organs. Some scientists suspect
air pollutants cause birth defects.
Nearly 2.5 million people die worldwide each year from the effects of outdoor
or indoor air pollution.
People react differently to different types of air pollution. Young
children and older adults, whose immune systems tend
to be weaker, are often more sensitive to pollution. Conditions such as asthma, heart disease,
and lung disease can be made worse by exposure to air pollution.
The length of exposure and amount and type of pollutants are also
factors.
Like people, animals, and plants, entire ecosystems can suffer effects from air pollution. Haze, like smog, is a visible type of air pollution that obscures shapes and colors. Hazy air pollution can even muffle sounds.
Air pollution particles eventually fall back to Earth. Air pollution can directly contaminate the surface of bodies of water and soil. This can kill crops or reduce their yield. It can kill young trees and other plants.
Sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxide particles in the air, can create acid rain when they mix with water and oxygen in the atmosphere. These air pollutants come mostly from coal-fired power plants and motor vehicles. When acid rain falls to Earth, it damages plants by changing soil composition; degrades water quality in rivers, lakes and streams; damages crops; and can cause buildings and monuments to decay.
Like humans, animals can suffer health effects from exposure to air pollution. Birth defects, diseases, and lower reproductive rates have all been attributed to air pollution.