Today is Scotland's Clean Air Day
Through our collective behaviours (working from home, walking and cycling instead of driving) during the national lockdown, there were extraordinary improvements in outdoor air quality. Let’s now keep doing these behaviours to keep our air clean. We can create a new normal with clean air by continuing to make these positive changes and keep healthy. Let’s make Thursday October 8th the cleanest Clean Air Day yet and feel the difference!
Clean Air Day - 8th October 2020
Scotland generally has good air quality, but during the national COVID-19 lockdown we experienced short-term improvements in air quality as people cut down on vehicle use through home working, and cycled and walked for their daily exercise routine. Let’s keep up the momentum and keep our air clean. Air pollution reduces life expectancy and affects people in the short-term, particularly asthma sufferers, people with respiratory diseases or other ailments. It can lead to increased hospital admissions for patients with lung and heart disease, especially during periods of higher than normal background levels of air pollution. Children also suffer from the effects of inhaling poor quality air. Road transport remains a major source of air pollution, contributing to one-third of NOX in Scotland. Being exposed to air pollution during pregnancy and after birth may affect the development of a baby’s lungs. There are simple steps we can all take to help our family avoid exposure to polluted air and cut down on the pollution we make, as well as improving our health, fitness and mental wellbeing through active travel.
Air pollution affects people in the short-term, particularly asthma sufferers; people with respiratory diseases or ailments and can lead to more hospital admissions for patients with lung and heart disease during periods of higher than normal background levels of pollution. Walking or cycling keeps you fit and healthy!
Here are some of the causes of air pollution:
The World Health Organisation environmental burden of disease study in 2016 identified air pollution as the largest environmental risk to health across the world. Through our collective behaviours (working from home, walking and cycling instead of driving) during the national lockdown, there were extraordinary improvements in outdoor air quality. Let’s now keep doing these behaviours to keep our air clean. We can create a new normal with clean air by continuing to make these positive changes and keep healthy. Let’s make Thursday October 8th the cleanest Clean Air Day yet and feel the difference.
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