A recent study by the World Health Organization (WHO) indicates that 23 percent of deaths that occur each year, affecting nearly 12.6 million people, are caused by environmental contributions from pollution and are preventable. Since its previous study 10 years ago, WHO concludes that deaths related to climate change, in addition to indoor and outdoor air pollution, have increased.
“A healthy environment underpins a healthy population,” says Margaret Chan, WHO director general, in a statement. “If countries do not take actions to make environments where people live and work healthy, millions will continue to become ill and die too young.”
One quarter of all human deaths per year could be avoided? You read that right. It's no coincidence that health leaders and organizations are concerned about climate change. Join the movement to get involved.
One in Four Deaths Related to Environmental Issues, According to the WHO
By Cat DiStasio I March 16, 2016
A new study conducted by the World Health Organization (WHO) says that nearly one in four deaths are linked to environmental causes and are avoidable. The agency’s new report is the first comprehensive evaluation of environmental health risks since 2006, and it concludes that some 12.6 million people die each year from diseases and injuries related to environmental risks. Increases in air pollution, as well as climate change and chemical exposure, all contribute to deaths that the WHO says could be prevented.
The study says environmental risks are linked to over 100 of the most dangerous diseases and injuries in the world. The agency estimates that nearly 12.6 million people–23 percent of deaths each year–are a direct result of environmental factors. Deaths related to indoor and outdoor air pollution, climate change and exposure to synthetic chemicals have increased since the previous study ten years ago, leading WHO to conclude that many, if not all, of these environmentally linked deaths could have been avoided.
