The population of Beijing, China is 20,693,000. These 20 million people live in and breathe air that has reached a level that is 40 times more deadly than the recommended exposure limit for a healthy adult. Everyday, people have to check an Air Quality Index and decide if they should wear a mask to work or not. But, there is a certain group of people who are feeling the environmental neglect and abuse even more severely; the children.
More and more parents are confining their
children indoors. Which means sacrificing field trips, outdoor sports, and simply playing with friends. Many schools have larger, hospital quality air
purification systems that attract worried parents of sick children. The
International School of Beijing even has a recess area with a tennis court that
is covered by a futuristic looking dome with an air-filtration system for when
the pollution levels are particularly high.
The article expresses that studies from Colombia University show that levels of anxiety, depression, and autism grew
when parents are exposed to high levels of toxic pollutants. On one bad air day
specifically, 9,000 children went through emergency care at Beijing Children’s Hospital and half of those patients where admitted due to respiratory problems.
For the more fortunate children, their
parents can afford to buy an air purifier which can cost upwards to a $3,000.
Or to send them to a well filtered private school, or better still, get out of
Beijing altogether. But as you can imagine, it is not that simple for most
people in the city.
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