Fewer children admitted to hospital for asthma as air quality improves

Everyone’s health can be compromised by poor air quality. Consequences of long-term exposure include life-threatening conditions like heart disease, strokes and cancer.

Particulate Matter (PM) 2.5 is one of the main elements of urban air pollution, released from homes, traffic and industry. Annually, 29,000-43,000 deaths are linked to air pollution in the UK. Children are particularly vulnerable to poor air quality since their lungs are still developing and they breathe faster. Air pollution is especially dangerous to children with asthma, increasing their risk of asthma flare-ups and hospital admissions as a result.

Our chart of the week below shows how air quality in England has dramatically improved over the last 10 years, alongside an overall fall in children’s hospital admissions for asthma. 

The chart reveals that the gap in childhood asthma admissions between people living in the most and least deprived areas has almost halved in the past decade. The most deprived decile saw the biggest reduction in admission rates, as annual PM 2.5 concentrations fell.

In 2019/20, the Clean Air Strategy and National Pollution Control Programme were announced. As well as setting out plans to meet pollution concentration guidelines, they also prioritised a transition to zero emission vehicles, restricted the burning of the most polluting fuels in homes, and made the case for air quality considerations in health policies and practice. 

The following year, there was a major drop in the rate of childhood asthma admissions and average annual PM 2.5 levels. The Covid-19 pandemic could have contributed to this, as reduced transport use during lockdowns led to significant falls in air pollution. Following a rise in admission rates by 2021, admissions in 2022/23 began to fall again along with the average annual PM 2.5 concentration. This may have been influenced by the announcement of the Environment Act 2021.

Despite almost all local authorities already meeting England’s 2040 PM 2.5 annual target, the new government should not become complacent. The World Health Organization’s latest “2030 recommendation” is more ambitious, and pushes for PM levels far below England’s current average. 

The past decade has demonstrated the clear health impact of implementing air pollution reduction targets. Aligning ongoing centrally driven policy with global goals would pave the way for further health equality for the most deprived groups.