Air pollution caused nearly 6 million preterm births worldwide: Study

The study quantifies the effects of indoor and outdoor pollution on several key indicators of pregnancy, including gestational age at birth, reduction in birth weight, low birth weight, and pre-term birth.

New York: Air pollution likely contributed to almost 6 million premature births and almost 3 million underweight babies in 2019, according to a study.

The study, led by the University of California-San Francisco and the University of Washington, quantifies the effects of indoor and outdoor pollution on several key indicators of pregnancy, including gestational age at birth, reduction in birth weight, low birth weight, and pre-term birth.

The analysis, published in the journal PLOS Medicine, stated that the global incidence of pre-term birth and low birthweight could be reduced by almost 78 percent if air pollution were minimised in Southeast Asia and sub-Saharan Africa, where indoor pollution is common and pre-term birth rates are the highest in the world.