This Is What You Need to Know about the Environment and Health in Developing Countries
While many organizations are working to improve health care in developing nations through improved medical interventions and education, other groups are focusing on a root cause of poor health: the deteriorating natural environment.
Pollution, whether it comes in the form of contaminated water or poor air quality, can be deadly, especially in developing countries. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), about 12.6 million people die each year from diseases linked to a polluted environment. That means that hazardous environmental conditions are the main factor in a fourth of the annual deaths in the world.
An important balance must be sought to pursue economic development that empowers individuals and communities without abandoning calls to clean up the environment. Unrestrained development can bring more air, water, and soil pollution that can cause cancer and lung diseases. The need for more energy often results in more carbon dioxide, methane, and other greenhouse gases being released into the atmosphere. This contributes to climate change, which scientists have said threatens the water and food supplies that are vital for human life and health.
By 2050, according to the WHO, more than 65 percent of the world’s population will live in poorly developed urban centers where people are more exposed to poor water and air conditions and less-than-optimal sanitation. All these factors contribute to an increase in deadly or debilitating diseases.
To combat complex problems with pollution, governments around the world are working with businesses and non-profit organizations to act. At the recent Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, for example, the government of Morocco called on ministers of health and the environment to sign a declaration encouraging the United Nations to bring together the world’s health and environment sectors to work against climate change.
The WHO has listed priorities for addressing environmental issues that cause health problems and created action items to address them. The organization believes that a small number of environmental issues contribute to much of the risk, and that simple preventative measures can reduce the spread of related diseases.
Here are the problems the WHO has identified as contributing to poor health:
Indoor Smoke
This problem arises from cooking and heating indoors using solid fuels. The WHO states that about 1.6 million people die each year due to respiratory diseases as a result.
Malaria
More than 1.2 million people — primarily very young children who live in Africa — die each year from this mosquito-borne disease. Mosquitos lay eggs in water, and poorly-designed irrigation and water systems, poor water storage and waste disposal practices, and deforestation create standing water that facilitates breeding.
Vehicular Traffic
People who live in low- and middle-income countries make up most of the world’s 1.2 million annual deaths and injuries from road-traffic. As road systems deteriorate in urban and rural areas with inadequate infrastructure, pedestrians and cyclists are particularly at risk.
Water Quality and Related Issues
About 1.7 million people die each year from poor sanitation, bad hygiene, and unsafe water. Diarrheal disease often is the cause.
Air Pollution
Vehicles, factories, and energy plants produce air pollution that kills about 800,000 each year in cities.
Accidental Poisoning
About 350,000 people die each year as a result of unintended poisoning. The majority of those deaths occur in developing countries where people are routinely exposed to toxic chemicals and pesticides.
Lead
Exposure to lead causes about 230,000 deaths each year. Lead also affects the cognitive development of one-third of the world’s children — almost all of whom live in developing countries.
Climate Change
Extreme weather events, changes in agricultural production, and new disease patterns due to a changing world climate cause about 150,000 deaths each year.
The WHO has outlined a set of Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) to promote environmental sustainability and address poverty and poor health. The goals aim to preserve environmental resources, implement sustainable development principles into government policies and programs, and make substantial improvements to the quality of life of people who live in slums. In its statement, the WHO notes that “addressing the root environmental causes of disease is vital” to achieving these goals.
Some of these goals include:
Eradicating Extreme Poverty and Hunger
Policies that address both the environment and health can work to decrease the spread of vector-borne diseases, including malaria, in agricultural areas where crops are irrigated. This goal also calls for better practices for managing livestock waste and use of pesticides, more strategic land use, and increased water conservation. Overall, these practices can increase harvests, stabilize food supplies, and improve people’s health.
Reducing Child Mortality
Using cleaner household fuels and better indoor stoves will cut down on indoor air pollution and instances of children dying from acute respiratory disease, according to the WHO. Practices that improve water quality and sanitation will result in fewer cases of diarrheal and vector-borne diseases among children.
Promoting Gender Equality and Empowering Women
Women and their families will benefit from better agricultural policies and practices because women often take on the role of food preparers, cultivators, and providers. When women assuming these roles for their families have a more stable, healthier food supply (with reduced exposure to agro-chemicals) and use cleaner household fuels, they can create homes with fewer risks for respiratory diseases and diseases related to chemical pollution.
