Environmental Factors and Health Promotion: Infant Air Quality Plan

This report focuses on the impact of environmental factors, specifically air pollution, on infant health and development. It identifies harmful air pollutants, their sources (natural and man-made), and their effects on infants, including respiratory illnesses, immune system impacts, and potential for developmental delays. The report outlines a health promotion plan designed for caregivers, including situational assessments, goal setting, stakeholder involvement (GPs, environmentalists, caregivers), and the dissemination of educational materials. Recommendations include educating caregivers on the dangers of air pollution, promoting avoidance of indoor smoking, and suggesting interventions like proper ventilation and the use of humidifiers. The report also provides valuable resources and references for further information on this critical topic, aiming to improve infant health and safety through informed caregiver practices and community involvement.

Environmental Factors
and Health Promotion for
Infants

Environmental factor chosen
 Harmful air pollutants present in air.
 Causes : Due to the indiscriminate combustion of the fossil fuels ,
harmful gases emitted from the vehicles, chemicals and toxic fumes
from factories, dust particles, volcanic emission and wild fires(Goldizen,
Sly & Knibbs, 2016).

Sources of air pollution
 Natural sources
Volcanic eruption
Forest Fires
Radon
Dog and mist
 Man-made sources
Burning of the fossil fuel
Vehicular emission
Aerosol spray
Factory fumes
Deforestation

Impact of air pollutants in the health of the
infants
 Infants are more susceptible to
exposure to the hazardous pollutants of
air
 Impacts:-
 Respiratory illness – Asthma
exacerbations, bronchitis, decreased
lung function.
 Smaller particles can even penetrate
the epithelial lining of the lungs
The cells can be damaged by the
pollutants like metals, ozone and free
radicals (Gorlanova et al., 2017).
 Ozone damages the lung alveoli

Impact of air pollutants in the health of the
infants
 The air pollutants affects the immune system (Gouveia et al., 2018)
 Premature or low weight babies are born
 Cognitive defects
 Respiratory and digestive problems
 Developmental delays

Health Promotion planning
 Steps for the development of a health promotion program:-
 Conduction of a Situational assessment (this was done brain storming
through the government and WHO websites )
 Setting of goals and objectives
 Involvement of the stakeholders
 Implementation of the strategies
 Reviewing of the strategies and feedback
 Recommendations

Goal and objectives
 Data collection
 Selection of the target audience
 Imparting education to the nurses
 Appropriate means of the dissemination of awareness, by using various
types of instructional designs.
 Recommendations of some cost effective ways of mitigating indoor air
pollution.
 Stakeholder involvement like GPs, an environmentalist , the caregivers,
families of the toddlers.

Recommendations for the
Caregivers for child safety
Roles of the caregivers
 Promoting mass education about the hazardous effects of the air
pollutants
 Educating about illnesses that can occur (Widder & Haselbach, 2017).
 Education about the daily concentration of the air pollutants over a
place
 Patient advocacy
 Assistance in the formulation of the policies
 Volunteering in community health programs

Interventions
 Education about avoidance of indoor smoking (Widder & Haselbach,
2017).
 Craft supplies in well ventilated area
 Avoiding clutter
 Maintaining cleanliness
 Use of the humidifiers
 Use of masks in outdoor environment

Resources
 A web based resource: https://
www.who.int/air-pollution/news-and-events/how-air-pollution-is-destroyin
g-our-health/children-and-air-pollution
 A national resource: http://aqicn.org/map/usa/
 https://www3.epa.gov/region1/airquality/reducepollution.html

References
 Barnes B. R. (2014). Behavioural change, indoor air pollution and child respiratory health in
developing countries: a review. International journal of environmental research and public health,
11(5), 4607–4618. doi:10.3390/ijerph110504607
 Goldizen, F. C., Sly, P. D., & Knibbs, L. D. (2016). Respiratory effects of air pollution on children.
Pediatric pulmonology, 51(1), 94-108.
 Gorlanova, O., Thalmann, S., Proietti, E., Stern, G., Latzin, P., Kühni, C., ... & Frey, U. (2016). Effects
of breastfeeding on respiratory symptoms in infancy. The Journal of pediatrics, 174, 111-117.
 Gouveia, N., Junger, W. L., Romieu, I., Cifuentes, L. A., de Leon, A. P., Vera, J., ... & Carbajal-Arroyo,
L. (2018). Effects of air pollution on infant and children respiratory mortality in four large Latin-
American cities. Environmental Pollution, 232, 385-391.
 Sierra-Vargas, M. P., & Teran, L. M. (2012). Air pollution: impact and prevention. Respirology
(Carlton, Vic.), 17(7), 1031–1038. doi:10.1111/j.1440-1843.2012.02213.x
 Widder, S., & Haselbach, L. (2017). Relationship among concentrations of indoor air contaminants,
their sources, and different mitigation strategies on indoor air quality. Sustainability, 9(7), 1149.