Air Pollution as a Global Health Policy Issue

Health policy- Air pollution

Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................1
MAIN BODY...................................................................................................................................1
TASK 1............................................................................................................................................1
Air pollution as a global health policy issue..........................................................................1
Concepts health, medical and social sciences in relation global health issues.......................4
Development of person-centric health and healthcare policies..............................................5
Various stages of policy development and their implementation..........................................6
CONCLUSION................................................................................................................................7
REFERENCES................................................................................................................................8
Online.....................................................................................................................................9

INTRODUCTION
Air pollution is one of the most significant cause of poor air quality in UK. According to
the Environmental Audit Committee the biggest contributors of air pollution are fossil fuel motor
vehicles and industrial smoke (Bakker, 2018). The continuous burning of fossil fuels leads to
emission of pollutants into the air and degrades the air quality. Yearly, air pollution causes forty
thousand deaths and is the leading cause of chronic conditions such as stroke, asthma, lung
diseases, cancer and heart diseases (Saberifar, 2021). Manufacturing and transport sectors,
household and energy sectors are the main contributors of UK's emission of greenhouse gases.
The solid and liquid particles suspended in the air coming from emissions produced by cars,
trucks, industries, chimneys, volcanoes, wildfire, dust pollen and Mold spores (A new method for
prediction of air pollution based on intelligent computation, 2019). Severe effects of air pollution
include, respiratory and heart problems, global warming, child health problems, acid rain,
eutrophication, depletion of ozone layer etc. Harmful gases are released in the atmosphere as a
result of incomplete combustion of fossil fuels such as sulphur dioxide, carbon monoxide (Aryal,
Harmon, and Dugas, 2021). Oxidation of sulphur oxide in the presence of metal catalysts caused
formation of sulphuric acids and sulphurous. Upon exposure, carbon monoxide binds to the
haemoglobin carrying oxygen and reduces the ability of the blood to carry oxygen, interfering
with the oxygen delivery system (Polychronidou, Lalas, Tzovaras and Votis, 2019). The level of
CO produced by indoor sources including gas stoves, improperly vented gas appliances is much
more than outdoor sources.
MAIN BODY
TASK 1
Air pollution as a global health policy issue
Air pollution developed increased risk of cardiovascular diseases, skin problems and
hazards to wildlife therefore in order to combat this life threatening situation, researchers and
stakeholders have implemented many policies and regulations to prevent the increasing impact of
air pollution in the UK. The government has been committed to reducing the harm to human
health by implementation of Clean air strategy (Chen and et. al., 2020). According to this
strategy, all the actions implemented by the government under this policy are to be made to
improve air quality. This policy has set stringent targets goal of which is to cut down the harm
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caused to humans due to pollution. London is the largest and the most polluted city in whole of
England. Progressive effects have been made for improvements in this sector. London
introduced its ultra-low emission in April, 2019 and because of this initiative there has been a
13% drop in NO2 levels compared to 2018. Some of the strategies introduced by this policy to
reduces air pollution are:
 reducing the number of trips taken in a car or a motorbike.
 Increasing use of bicycles for shorter distances.
 Avoiding burning of leaves, and other organic materials.
 Practising Carpool when going to a workplace.
 Avoiding use of crackers.
 Using of fans instead of air conditioners.
Clean air strategy has led to fewer premature deaths, lower medical expenses and fewer
school absences. There has been a significant decrease in asthma cases and fewer respiratory
conditions (Fan, 2020). Clean and good air leads to improved skin texture and acts as a mood
stabilizer. The effects of air pollution are more or less similar in animals compared to humans.
Therefore, air quality can severely affect the wildlife of the geographical area. These industries
account for over 20% of the total carbon emissions worldwide. Industries overall are a major
source of water, soil and land pollution. This degraded quality of air can lead to climate change,
loss of natural resources and extinction of new species. Air pollution is often closely associated
with many mental disorders such as chronic anxiety, schizophrenia and autism (Govender, 2020).
By execution of different strategies for reducing air pollution, the government can help by
reducing pre mature deaths and babies born with sickness. Cleaning the air quality not only
improves the health of individuals but it also boosts the economy of the country altogether. A
research shows that 17,000 pre mature deaths can be prevented, and three million working days
can be gained by reducing worker sickness which is caused by bad air quality. Therefore, with
good air quality employees are less likely to take leaves and work efficiently which can lead to
growth of the company as well as benefit the economy.
Air quality can also affect the productivity of lands and resources upon which agriculture
is done, poor quality lands can increase maintenance costs and shorten life of assets. A healthy
nation and successful economy go hand in hand. Residential emissions in an average household
in UK emits 2.7 tonnes CO2 every year by heating their homes. Air pollution is a grave risk and
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