Air pollution cuts average Indian's life expectancy by over 4 years

India is the worlds second most polluted country slightly trailing only Nepal the Energy Policy Institute at the University of Chicago EPIC said on MondayParticulate pollution is so severe that it shortens the average Indians life expectancy by more than four years relative to what it would be if the World Health Organization WHO air quality guidelines were metThis is up from about two years in the late 1990s due to a 69 per cent increase in particulate pollution it saidConcentrations in Indian states of Bihar Uttar Pradesh Haryana Punjab and the National Capital Territory of Delhi are substantially higher and the impact on life expectancy exceeds six yearsIts new air pollution index known as the Air Quality Life Index AQLI finds that air pollution reduces global life expectancy by nearly two years making it the single greatest threat to human healthThe tool gives figures like for an average resident of Delhi gain in life expectancy if the WHO guidelines are met could be up to 102 yearsLikewise it gives numbers of years lost to pollution for every district of India for a span of 18 years between 1998 and 2016What makes AQLI unique is that it converts pollution into perhaps the most important metric that exists life expectancy It does so at a hyperlocal level throughout the worldFurther it illustrates how air pollution policies can increase life expectancy when they meet the World Health Organizations WHO guideline existing national air quality standards or userdefined air quality levelsThis information helps informing local communities and policymakers about the importance of air pollution policies in very concrete termsLoss of life expectancy is highest in Asia exceeding six years in many parts of India and China some residents of the US still lose up to a year of life from pollutionFossil fueldriven particulate air pollution cuts global average life expectancy by 18 years per person according to the pollution index and accompanying report produced by the EPICAround the world today people are breathing air that represents a serious risk to their health But the way this risk is communicated is very often opaque and confusing translating air pollution concentrations into colors like red brown orange and green What those colors mean for peoples wellbeing has always been unclear Michael Greenstone the Milton Friedman Professor in Economics and Director of the EPIC saidGreenstone also noted My colleagues and I developed the AQLI where the L stands for life to address these shortcomings It takes particulate air pollution concentrations and converts them into perhaps the most important metric that exists life expectancyThe AQLI is based on a pair of peerreviewed studies coauthored by Greenstone that quantify the causal relationship between longterm human exposure to particulate pollution and life expectancyThe results from these studies are then combined with hyperlocalised global particulate matter measurements yielding unprecedented insight into the true cost of air pollution in communities around the worldSeventyfive per cent of the global population or 55 billion people live in areas where particulate pollution exceeds the WHO guidelineThe AQLI reveals that India and China which make up 36 per cent of the worlds population account for 73 per cent of all years of life lost due to particulate pollutionOn average people in India would live 43 years longer if their country met the WHO guideline expanding the average life expectancy at birth there from 69 to 73 yearsIn the US about a third of the population lives in areas not in compliance with the WHO guidelineThose living in the countrys most polluted counties could expect to live up to one year longer if pollution met the WHO guidelineGlobally the AQLI reveals that particulate pollution reduces average life expectancy by 18 years making it the greatest global threat to human healthBy comparison firsthand cigarette smoke leads to a reduction in global average life expectancy of about 16 yearsOther risks to human health have even smaller effects alcohol and drugs reduce life expectancy by 11 months unsafe water and sanitation take off seven months HIVAIDS four monthsConflict and terrorism take off 22 days So the impact of particulate pollution on life expectancy is comparable to that of smoking twice that of alcohol and drug use three times that of unsafe water five times that of HIVAIDS and more than 25 times that of conflict and terrorismWhile people can stop smoking and take steps to protect themselves from diseases there is little they can individually do to protect themselves from the air they breathe Greenstone saidCatch up on all the latest Crime National International and Hatke news here Also download the new midday Android and iOS apps to get latest updatesThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Except for the change in the headline the story has been provided ASIS AS AVAILABLE without any verification or 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