Living next to busy polluted roads as bad as passive smoking TEN cigarettes a day, scientists claim
The Royal College of Physicians warns air pollution kills 40,000 people a year
LIVING next to a busy road is as bad for you as passive smoking ten cigarettes a day, scientists have claimed.
reported Dutch researchers found the risks of living in a city are lower than smoking, but similar to those posed by passive smoking.
The study, in the Journal of Environmental Research, found living next a dual carriageway is the same as being exposed to 10 cigarettes' worth of second-hand smoke - while living by a steel factory is equivalent to three.
It comes as senior UK public health figures call for higher taxes on diesel cars in the wake of increasing evidence of harm caused by air pollution.
John Middleton, president of the Faculty of Public Health, told The Times: “The thing about air pollution is that it affects everybody.
“There has to be a recognition of the role of diesel and tax on diesel use will need to be increased."
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Research has also found pollution causes an estimated 4,500 premature births a year in Britain - while The Royal College of Physicians warns air pollution kills 40,000 people a year.
And a new study from Queen Mary, University of London, is set to report that children in the dirtiest areas of London have lower lung capacity as a result.
Professor Jonathan Grigg studied 2,300 8- to 9-year-olds, and found clear links between their breathing and pollution levels in their local area.
He told The Times: “There’s a huge issue of how you persuade people of the evidence. An average healthy person walking along a busy road is probably not going to feel anything in the short term.
“With cigarette smoking you can at least smell it.”
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