Why Aren’t We Doing More to Prevent Environmental Diseases in Developing Countries?

A new report released by the World Health Organisation (WHO) indicates that a significant proportion of deaths worldwide come from entirely preventable causes pertaining to the environment. Significantly, these deaths are most prevalent in developing countries which do not possess the knowledge or resources to avoid contributing to the global death toll.

The figures, released in March by the WHO, highlight a growing need among developed nations to educate and assist our developing neighbours to clean up their environments, both for the sake of their own population and for the health of the world’s atmosphere as a whole.

What the Facts Say

The report uncovered a number of startling facts and figures about the links between poor environment, ill health and death, especially in impoverished and undeveloped countries. Among others, the report showed that:

• The environment is a factor in causing or exacerbating over 100 of the deadliest diseases known to man
• 12.6 million people die per annum across the globe due to a poor environment
• 23% of all deaths are attributable to environmental factors within our power to change
• 26% of all deaths of infants under five years old could be prevented with a cleaner atmosphere
• 8.2m of 12.6m environmental deaths (65%) are caused by non-communicable diseases (NCDs), such as heart complications, cancer and strokes.
• 3.7 million people are killed by outdoor air pollution every year, while 4.3 million die from poor indoor air quality (traffic and cooking cause more than 80% of Chinese air pollution, for example).

What Can Be Done

In order to reverse the horrible consequences of a damaged environment, we must work on prevention rather than a cure. According to Dr Maria Neira, who is the WHO’s chief of public health and the environment, too little investment is being pumped into preventing diseases from being contracted, as opposed to treating them later on.

“Yes, we are spending more on treating TB, malaria and diarrhoea than we were 10 years ago,” explains Dr Neira. “But we are not spending anything like enough on building good sanitation and water systems. Only 3% of our health spending goes to stop people becoming sick; 97% is spent when people are sick.”

Investing in quality water storage systems which deal with algae, biofilm and other contaminants without the use of chemicals would be a huge step in the right direction to preventing millions of deaths brought about by dysentery and other diseases. Similarly, we must work to reduce the use of fossil fuels as energy sources for households in the developing world by increasing electrical infrastructure and implementing renewable technologies.

“Air pollution, access to clean water and sanitation, and the planning of cities are key to all future development,” continues Dr Neira. “Health needs to go into every equation for development. If we take the wrong choices now, our health will be devastated in terms of death, lack of quality of life and economic costs.”