Air pollution is a big problem that affects both people and animals. It's an important topic you might learn about in Year 7 Biology.
Breathing Problems: Air pollution can make it hard for people to breathe. It leads to diseases like asthma, chronic bronchitis, and even lung cancer. Studies show that about 4.2 million people die early each year because of outdoor air pollution.
Heart Health: Tiny particles in the air, like , can harm our hearts. If people breathe in these particles for a long time, their chances of developing heart problems go up by about 30%.
Other Health Issues: Pollution isn't just bad for our lungs and hearts. It also contains nasty chemicals that can hurt our brains and cause problems for pregnant women and growing kids.
Losing Homes: When the air isn’t clean, it can hurt animal homes. For example, acid rain, caused by things like sulfur dioxide () and nitrogen oxides (), can wreck ecosystems and reduce the number of different species. It's estimated that acid rain affects over 44 million acres of forests in the US.
Animal Health: Just like humans, animals can get sick from air pollution. High levels of carbon monoxide () can make it hard for animals to get enough oxygen. Some studies found that bird and fish populations can drop by up to 50% in areas with lots of pollution.
Food Chains: Air pollution can hurt plants. Since plants are at the start of the food chain, when they suffer, all the animals that eat them can also decline, causing even more problems for wildlife.
Air pollution is a serious danger to both people and animals. To protect our health and the environment, we need to work on solutions like conservation and controlling pollution. Understanding these impacts is important so we can raise awareness and take action to reduce air pollution.
Air pollution is a big problem that affects both people and animals. It's an important topic you might learn about in Year 7 Biology.
Breathing Problems: Air pollution can make it hard for people to breathe. It leads to diseases like asthma, chronic bronchitis, and even lung cancer. Studies show that about 4.2 million people die early each year because of outdoor air pollution.
Heart Health: Tiny particles in the air, like , can harm our hearts. If people breathe in these particles for a long time, their chances of developing heart problems go up by about 30%.
Other Health Issues: Pollution isn't just bad for our lungs and hearts. It also contains nasty chemicals that can hurt our brains and cause problems for pregnant women and growing kids.
Losing Homes: When the air isn’t clean, it can hurt animal homes. For example, acid rain, caused by things like sulfur dioxide () and nitrogen oxides (), can wreck ecosystems and reduce the number of different species. It's estimated that acid rain affects over 44 million acres of forests in the US.
Animal Health: Just like humans, animals can get sick from air pollution. High levels of carbon monoxide () can make it hard for animals to get enough oxygen. Some studies found that bird and fish populations can drop by up to 50% in areas with lots of pollution.
Food Chains: Air pollution can hurt plants. Since plants are at the start of the food chain, when they suffer, all the animals that eat them can also decline, causing even more problems for wildlife.
Air pollution is a serious danger to both people and animals. To protect our health and the environment, we need to work on solutions like conservation and controlling pollution. Understanding these impacts is important so we can raise awareness and take action to reduce air pollution.