More recent studies are making the case that air pollution will lead to damage at every level of our physical and mental faculties. The risks these particles present, whether from human waste or disease, factor into worsening conditions for our bodies. At the same time, the CDC warns that people will continue to suffer from aggravated respiratory illnesses, hospitalizations, and acute allergic reactions as our Earth’s air quality decreases. These facts emphasize why everyone must pay attention to what an environment under duress will do to public health. 

 Fears about airborne infections only rose due to a pandemic that still hasn’t run its course. But, less has been said about how our polluted air puts us at even more risk when facing harmful viruses and bacteria. Findings from the Canadian Medical Association Journal concluded that long-term exposure to air pollution could lead to cases of more severe COVID-19, with some resulting in death. Pollutants, released through various sources, lead to inflammation, reduced immune response, and weakened lung activity. Bad air quality makes our bodies more receptive to disease. 

And our mental health matters just as much as our physical health; Evidence suggests that polluted air risks harming both. A study from the medical journal Development Psychology finds a link between youth in highly polluted areas and adverse mental health effects increases. Over the years, children and teens exposed to air pollution significantly suffered from depressive symptoms. While science has long reported that ozone affects lung functions, it hasn’t been noted how it might negatively affect brain activity. Air pollution seems to amplify how our health deteriorates.

A result of collapsing health is likely more death. An update to the 2017 Lancet Commission on pollution and health indicates that 1 in 6 deaths worldwide were caused or influenced by air, land, and water pollution. Furthermore, deaths from air pollution by ambient particles increased by hundreds of thousands from 2015 to 2019. Despite global pollution, the study also concluded that protective actions from governments and health agencies have stagnated. While air pollution slowly harms populations, “strikingly little” has been done to address this public health crisis. 

Recognizing the dangers of our unseen atmosphere is recent human development. For years, we ignored how worsening air quality factors into the immediate and apparent risks to our health, tricking ourselves into believing that these human wastes wouldn’t endanger us. But continuing science is trying to wake us up. Levels of pollution are complicating and lessening our ability to live healthy lives. Developing solutions and technologies, such as clean energy and air purifiers, might address this growing crisis. But immediate action and focus on these options is likely the only way to move forward.