One mosquito coil equals 100 cigarettes, says expert
August 31st, 2011 - 9:02 pm ICT by IANSNew Delhi, Aug 31 (IANS) Smoke emitted from one mosquito repellant coil is equivalent to those of 100 cigarettes, thus causing harm to a large number of people in India, an expert said Wednesday.
“Not many people know about it, but the damage done to your lungs by one mosquito coil is equivalent to the damage done by 100 cigarettes. This was according to a recent study conducted in Malyasia,” said Chest Research Foundation director Sandeep Salvi.
He was speaking at the conference ‘Air Pollution and Our Health’, organised by the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) along with the Indian Council for Medical Research and the Indian Medical Association.
Salvi said there is a lack of awareness about the impact of air pollution on human health.
Pointing out the “lack of research culture” among Indian doctors, Salvi said that indoor air pollution too is a health risk factor.
Participants at the event, which included doctors and health researchers, also spoke about vehicular air pollution in the capital.
According to estimates, about 55 percent of Delhi’s population lives within 500 metres from main roads - and is, therefore, prone to a variety of physical disorders.
“The vehicular pollution is a major concern for the environment. The rising incidents of genetic disorder has a lot to do with air pollution. India loses one million children under five because of respiratory problems every year,” said Sanjeev Bagai, the chief executive officer of Batra Hospitals.
He said industries also contribute to the air pollution and these need to be shifted out of the capital.
- Indians beware - smoking can cause arthritis (Oct 12 is World Arthritis Day) - Oct 12, 2011
- 'Homoeopathy growing at 30 percent annually in India' - Sep 11, 2011
- DRDO mosquito repellent launched for commercial use - Feb 14, 2011
- DRDO mosquito repellent launched for commercial use (Lead, superseding correcting name in para 4) - Feb 14, 2011
- Environment group hails tax hike on diesel cars - Mar 23, 2011
- Failure to tackle green issues could hurt growth: Ecologists - Apr 17, 2012
- Petrol hike will push diesel car demand: CSE - Sep 15, 2011
- Hyderabad's rising air pollution causing concern - Oct 07, 2010
- Is there any hope for the Yamuna? (Comment - June 5 is World Environment Day) - Jun 05, 2012
- Hyderabad's air quality, traffic congestion causing concern (Lead) - Oct 07, 2010
- Pollution at 'unhealthy levels' in Delhi, says CSE (Lead) - Dec 13, 2010
- Electric cars cause more pollution than petrol ones: Study - Feb 14, 2012
- Toxicity in toys no child's play for Indian scientists - Aug 01, 2010
- Iron, steel sector fare poorly on green scale, says study - Jun 04, 2012
- Diesel cars guzzling 40 percent of segment's fuel: CSE - Jan 25, 2012
Tags: 100 cigarettes, chief executive officer, cse, foundation director, genetic disorder, health researchers, health risk factor, human health, indian doctors, indian medical association, indoor air pollution, lack of awareness, main roads, mosquito, mosquito coil, research culture, research foundation, respiratory problems, sandeep, vehicular pollution