Air pollution may factor in Covid-19 deaths, with East Asia worst hit: study

Researchers say 15 per cent of global fatalities from the respiratory disease could be linked to long-term exposure to pollutants

This doesn’t mean there is a direct cause and effect relationship but it could be a ‘co-factor’, they say

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A new study suggests 15 per cent of global deaths from Covid-19 could be linked to long-term exposure to carbon emissions and other pollutants. Photo: AFP

Published: 7:00am, 29 Oct 2020Updated: 7:00am, 29 Oct 2020

Air pollution may contribute to deaths among people suffering from Covid-19, according to new research, which estimates 15 per cent of global fatalities from the respiratory disease could be linked to long-term exposure to carbon emissions and other pollutants.

Researchers, including those from Germany’s Max Planck Institute for Chemistry and the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, published the findings in the medical journal Cardiovascular Research this week.

The study focuses on long-term exposure to air pollution because it is known to aggravate lung and heart ailments, which are also among conditions that increase the risk of severe or fatal Covid-19 infection, according to health authorities.

“If you already have heart disease, then air pollution and coronavirus infection will cause trouble that can lead to heart attacks, heart failure and stroke,” said study co-author Thomas Munzel from the University Medical Centre at Johannes Gutenberg University in Mainz.

The researchers estimated that air pollution could contribute to 27 per cent of the Covid-19 deaths in China. Photo: AFP

East Asia was the hardest hit of the regions, the researchers estimated, with air pollution contributing to 27 per cent of Covid-19 deaths there. It was also put at 27 per cent in China, the world’s largest carbon emitter. In Europe, air pollution may have been linked to 19 per cent of deaths, and it was 17 per cent in North America. The pandemic has already taken more than 1.1 million lives.

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