What is air pollution?
Air pollution is anything that makes the air harmful to our health. Outdoor air pollution is mainly caused by cars and burning fuel or waste.
Our lungs are always exposed to the air around us when we breathe. It can be difficult to completely avoid outdoor air pollution, but there are things you can do to reduce the amount of polluted air you breathe in.
Air pollution can also affect the air we breathe inside.
Indoor air pollution can be caused by lots of things like gas cooking and tobacco smoke.
We have more information about indoor air pollution, including what causes it and how you can improve the air quality in your home.
Why is air pollution more harmful to children?
Air pollution is more harmful to babies and young children because their lungs and immune systems are still developing.
Children are also more likely to breathe in polluted air than adults. This is because they breathe faster than adults and are more likely to breathe through their mouths, so the air is not filtered by their nose. When they’re outside, children are often closer to the ground than adults. This means that they’re closer to causes of outdoor air pollution like car exhausts and dust.
If your child breathes in high levels of air pollution over a long period of time, they might be at risk of:
- their lungs not growing properly, or not working as well when they get older
- developing asthma during childhood or as an adult. If your child already has asthma, air pollution can be an asthma trigger.
- asthma-like symptoms, for example coughing and noisy chest sounds like wheezing
- lung infections like pneumonia
- developing a lung condition when they’re older, like COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disorder) or lung cancer.
Find out more about how air pollution can affect your lungs, including the different types of particles that can cause outdoor air pollution.
Check the air pollution in your area
Find out about the levels of air pollution in your area using this air quality map.
Can air pollution affect unborn babies?
Air pollution can affect babies’ lungs before and after they’re born. When you’re pregnant, breathing in polluted air can also pass on some of the harmful chemicals in the air to your baby through the placenta.
The charity Tommy’s have more information about how chemical and air pollution can affect pregnancy.
Protecting your child's lungs from air pollution
Air pollution can be very worrying. Even though we know that it harms children’s lungs, it can feel like something that is out of our control. For example, if you live in a big city, it may not be practical to move away.
But you can try to reduce how much polluted air your child breathes in by:
- walking or cycling instead of driving if possible
- avoiding busy roads and junctions when you can. Travelling on quieter streets can help to avoid the worst air pollution.
- walking on the side of the pavement furthest away from the road
- avoiding travelling during the busiest times of the day when there’ll be more traffic if possible
- sharing ideas with their school about ways you can reduce traffic around the school, for example through car sharing, car-free zones, or the park and stride scheme
- helping them to avoid passive smoking. Make sure that you have a smoke-free home, especially if you’re pregnant. This includes asking people you know not to smoke around your child.
- opening windows in your home on days with lower air pollution to let fresh air in. Check the levels of air pollution in your area using this air quality map.
We have more information about how to reduce your risk of air pollution, including tips for days when pollution levels are high.
Find out more about how to improve the air quality in your home.
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Call our helpline for support with your condition. Get advice on your medicines, symptoms or travelling with a lung condition, or just call us to say hello.
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