Essay 2
Human Responsibility for the Environment
Andrea Wheeler
Liberty University
ENGL 101-D22
Professor Desiree Sholes
April 24, 2021
Pollution is often linked closely with poverty-stricken and low-income areas all around the world.
Pollution can cause death in children, non-communicable diseases, and even effect a fetus negatively
before it is born. Around 92% of the deaths that occur in children due to pollution are in low- and
middle-income areas. Lack of money and resources effect how many children live their day to day
lives. Some may not have clean air to breath, fresh water to drink, food to eat or a clean place to live.
Also, in these areas’ immunizations are not always available and natural resources may be something
that
certain areas are lacking. These things can all play a factor in how the child develops and how at risk
they may be to contracting a disease or even death. Children are more sensitive to adults when it comes
to contracting several non-communicable diseases. However, pollution prevention and awareness can
become a huge opportunity to help improve children’s health in these areas. All humans, not just ones
in low-income areas should educate and make themselves aware of different ways to prevent and aide
in fighting pollution to help the health and wellbeing of our children. Something as simple as recycling,
conservation of water, and car pooling can make a difference if we all work together.
The world’s largest environmental cause for death and disease in children is pollution.
“Pollution was responsible in 2016 for 940,000 deaths in children, two-thirds under age 5.” These
deaths account for 16% worldwide and in severe areas as many as one in four children die from
pollution related illnesses. Several of these deaths were caused from polluted air and water and
resulted in respiratory and gastrointestinal diseases. Another risk is non-communicable diseases that
pollution is linked to, and these seem to be rising. Not only are children effected but pollution can also
have negative effects in unborn children. Fetuses, infants, and young children are very sensitive to
pollution in our environment. Some of the non-communicable diseases linked to pollution are asthma,
neurodevelopmental disorders, birth defects, mental health problems and even pediatric cancer. It has
been found,” Children breathe more air, drink more water, and eat more food than adults each day on
a per-kilogram body-weight basis and therefore have proportionately greater exposures to
environmental pollutants.” Cognitive and
developmental disabilities have both been seen in children exposed to pollution. This has been known
to cause lower IQ, learning deficits, and behavioral issues. As expected, lower income children are at
much higher risk to develop a developments disability. As many as one in six children here in the United
states are diagnosed with some form of developmental disability. One worry is that there are many
unanswered questions when it comes to many chemical pollutants that are used in the world today.
Some have not yet been recognized or tested to find any negative effects that they may have on out
children. It is possible the number of children effected by chemicals will become much larger due to lack
of information. Pollution can be controlled and possibly even prevented if the right steps are taken.
There are field testing and pollution control policies that need to be followed. The issue of pollution has
often been neglected all over the world and within different health agendas. Awareness needs to be
raised of pollutions negative impacts to end this neglect. With all humans on the same page and helping
fight the effects of pollution we could save many of these children’s lives.
Providing a healthy physical environment is key to reducing the number of children that we are
losing due to pollution. These deaths and diseases can be prevented by having clean air, water, healthy
food, and safe products. Emerging research and recent findings between children’s health and
negative environmental effects should continue to be investigated to aide in preventing these negative
outcomes that pollution has on children.” Implementation of pollution control strategies can provide
multiple benefits, both short-term and long-term, for human health, the economy and the
environment for societies at every level of income (Grosse et al., 2002; Same et al., 2017).” Humans in
every country, every city, and every walk of life should be aware of the effects that pollution has on the
children of our world. By becoming aware and educated on ways to reduce pollution it can make a
difference and help to fight pollution death and disease in children today.
Humans can largely assist in their everyday lives in many ways to help aide and fight death and
disease in our world’s children. “By establishment of good health practices from birth, children can be
protected from enteric infections resulting in serious diarrhoeal episodes.” Preventative care for
unborn children, immunization, healthy food, water, and a clean environment can assist in establishing
good health. Also, “By ensuring access to healthy environments, exposure to enteric pathogens can be
prevented.” Regardless of a person having children or not, there is always a way that they are able to
help and assist to make sure that the environment in their area is safe and clean for children. There are
ways to volunteer and educate themselves on steps that can be taken. Prevention of pollution is huge
way that we can improve chlidren’s health and prevent harmful diseases.
Humans should always be aware of how they can aide in keeping our environment clean not
just for pollution death and diseases in children, but for many reasons. By doing so, we will make sure
that humans all over the world live longer, healthier lives. No matter what area, high income, or low
income, in a rich neighborhood or a poverty-stricken area, there are things as humans we can all do to
contribute to keeping the environment clean and safe for our children. Everyone can play a role in
helping to keep the environment a clean and safe place to live and should take the initiative to educate
others on ways to do so.
References
Philip J. Landrigan, Richard Fuller, Samantha Fisher, William A. Suk, Peter Sly, Thomas C. Chiles,
Stephan Bose-O'Reilly, Pollution and children's health, Science of The Total Environment, Volume 650,
Part 2, 2019, Pages 2389-2394
(https:// www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0048969718338543 )
Munro, S. B., Abebe, G., Adedoyin, R. A., Ahmadi, M., Akalu, T. Y., Alamene, G. M., Alanzi, T. M., Almasi,
A., Amare, A. T., Ansari, F., Ayala Quintanilla, B. P., Azari, S., Babaee, E., Bärnighausen, T. W., Bayati, M.,
Bennett, D. A., Burugina Nagaraja, S., Campos-Nonato, I. R., Cárdenas, R., . . . Local Burden of Disease
Diarrhoea Collaborators. (2020). Mapping geographical inequalities in childhood diarrhoeal morbidity
and mortality in low-income and middle-income countries, 2000–17: Analysis for the global burden of
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https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140- 6736(20)30114-8
Cohen Hubal, E. A., Reif, D. M., Slover, R., Mullikin, A., & Little, J. C. (2020). Children's environmental
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