We are living in an era where breathing in fresh air has become a challenge. Air we breathe and environment we live in can be hazardous to our health. According to WHO, environmentally linked factors are major causes of illness and death. More people are dying now only because of the bad environment and air pollution. Women are one the worst affected groups by air pollution.
Women have been facing miscarriages for a long time but they are going through a ‘silent miscarriage that is mainly caused by pollution. In ‘silent’ miscarriage women, don’t bleed or get any other normal miscarriage symptoms; the fetus dies and the body does not expel it. Some studies have shown that the women who live in rural areas or go for farming face the most of the air pollution. These women are at higher risk of having ‘silent’ miscarriages.
Studies have shown that millions of women who live in rural areas are at higher risk of developing lung cancer, strokes, heart issues, and pulmonary disease of prolonged exposure to household air pollution.
Many people assume that women who live in rural areas can’t develop cancer because they live in a clean environment and they get fresh air to breathe. But this is not absolutely true because those women don’t have access to LPG gas connection. They have to stay in front of ‘Choolhas’ for a longer time and those emitting gases directly affect their lungs and overall health conditions.
According to some studies, increasing level of pollution is also causing various types of cancer in women:
- Possible link between leukemia and exposure to electromagnetic field
- 30 percent of lung cancer cases are due to environmental causes
- Testicular and ovarian cancers are related to pollution only
- Breast cancer linked with environmental exposure to endocrine disruptors, heavy metals and chemicals present in indoor or outdoor air.
Dr. Rekha Srivastava, Gynecologist states that “Increasing level of air pollution is causing many health issues to women including those related to pregnancy. Air pollution is causing ovarian cancer and it also affects the fetus. To avoid these pregnancy-related issues which are caused by pollution, women should try waking up early in the morning, because that is the time when we can get fresh air and oxygen for our body. Try waking up early and breath or do yoga in that fresh air”
Apart from cancer, there are various health issues that can be developed because of the air pollution. These include birth defects in children, reproductive problems, heart and respiratory problems, etc.
Prevention measures should be followed to avoid or minimize these health issues. This is the high time when we should take the environmental condition seriously and start changing our habits accordingly such as waking up early to breathe into the fresh air, daily yoga, and keep planting and teach your younger ones to plant as many trees as possible.
