According to new research into China’s filthy air, a study has concluded that the toxic smog Chinese citizens breath frequently is as toxic and deadly as cigarette smoke.
This conclusion was reached in part by the haunting fact that 1 in 3 deaths in China today are caused by air quality, either through the exacerbation of other issues, or direct air quality-related illness.
“The Post reports that the new findings from Nanjing support previous research; the paper says that the International Energy Agency published a report in June claiming that air pollution has trimmed some 25% off life expectancy in China, while a study co-authored by researchers at three renowned universities determined that people in China’s north could lose an average of 5.5 years of life due to smog.”
Things have gotten increasingly worse for Chinese residents, and this past year, business and schools were interrupted several times due to toxic levels of smog in the air. In many Chinese homes, air purifiers work overtime to provide clean air, but often, the indoor oxygen is not nearly clean enough.
“The study, carried out by researchers at China’s Nanjing University, found that the air was most toxic in the cities of Baoding, Shijiazhuang and Handan, each reporting more than 30,000 deaths in 2013 that could be linked to pollution.”
Though the U.S. thankfully has regulations to prevent such extreme smog events, we are not too far behind in some areas of the nation.
Unfortunately, our own thirst for commerce and cheap products has contributed to China’s deadly air quality issue as American corporations export the production of many products to regulation-loose China.
