Air pollution cuts up to seven months off child life expectancy in Birmingham, research suggests

‘It’s awful that children living in the UK are breathing air that may shorten their lives’

Millions of children in England are breathing in toxic fumes everyday (Getty)

Air pollution may shave as much as seven months off the life expectancy of children who live in congested cities, UK research suggests.

The “mortality burden” of a lifetime of breathing toxic air has been calculated for one of the UK’s largest cities, Birmingham, by a team from King’s College London.

Researchers estimate that an eight-year-old living in the city today can expect to die two to seven months earlier based on the expected pollution concentrations for the city.

The impact was considered to be worse than some other major cities in the UK – with the report finding a higher loss of life expectancy in Birmingham than Manchester.

It calculated the annual health cost of air pollution in Birmingham was between £190m to £470m per year.

The study looked at the combined impact of two pollutants – particulate matter and nitrogen dioxide – two of the leading causes of poor health from air pollution.

It is the first time new government guidance on “mortality burdens” of air pollution has been applied in practice in a large city area.

While London has a long-standing low emissions zone, local leaders are calling for other major UK cities to follow suit.

Holly Billington, director of the UK100 network, which commissioned the research, said: “This report should be a wake-up call to policymakers not just in Birmingham but across the country.

“We need to tackle this invisible killer, which is cutting the lives of children and causing health misery for thousands of adults.”

The excess mortality cost to the UK of air pollution has been estimated at between £8.5bn and £20.2bn a year.

Sue Huyton, co-ordinator of the Clean Air Parents’ Network, said: “It’s awful that children living in the UK are breathing air that may shorten their lives.

“As a parent, you want to do everything you can for your children, but when it comes to air pollution you can feel helpless – that’s why those in power must step up.

“We need the government and Birmingham City Council to take ambitious action to tackle the toxic air in this city, and we need them to do it now.”

Simon Stevens, chief executive of NHS England said: “Two point six million children in England are breathing in toxic fumes everyday and now there is clear and frightening evidence that this could also shorten their lives.

“The NHS is taking practical steps to reduce our effect on the environment, as well as treating those suffering the consequences of air pollution, yet we cannot win this fight alone and the growing consensus on the need for wider action across society is welcome.”

A spokesperson for the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs said the government would be “investing £3.5bn to clean up our air”.

“Air quality has improved significantly in recent years, but air pollution continues to shorten lives which is why we are taking concerted action to tackle it,” they added.

Additional reporting by PA