Health

WHO: Excessive air pollution affects 92 percent of people

WHO: Excessive air pollution affects 92 percent of people

By ASSOCIATED PRESS

A woman covers her face to shield polluted air in Balkhu, Kathmandu on Thursday, September 22, 2016. Nepal ranks 177 among 180 countries in terms of air quality with pollution index of 81.76. Photo: Skanda Gautam

GENEVA: The World Health Organisation says more than nine out of 10 people worldwide live in areas with excessive air pollution, contributing to problems like strokes, heart disease and lung cancer. The UN health agency says in a new report that 92 percent of people live in areas where air quality exceeds WHO limits, with southeast Asia, eastern Mediterranean and western Pacific regions hardest hit. The country-by-country figures come from new satellite data as well as traditional ground measurements of pollution, mostly in cities, in about 3,000 places worldwide. WHO says one in nine deaths worldwide is linked to indoor and outdoor pollution. The report released Tuesday focuses on outdoor air pollution, which is estimated to kill about 3 million people per year based on 2012 figures, the most recent available.