(BlackDoctor.org) — Rapid industrialization and growing population aided by technological advancements have given rise to enormous pressure on the ecosystem. There has been a continuous destruction of the biosphere in the form of pollution in air, water and soil. Air pollution is a topic of great concern in the United States. Automobile exhaust fumes have aggravated the problem in terms of maximum contribution towards air pollution. Automobile exhaust fumes rich in carbon monoxide harms the oxygen binding mechanism in human blood.
Apart from these, more than 65,000 chemicals are currently in use in U.S.A with which human beings come into constant contact. Many of these chemicals are harmful and pose a serious health hazard. Numerous chemicals have been designated as hazardous to biological system and these chemicals pose a health hazard. These chemicals are often toxic, causing serious diseases like Cancer and disabilities of various kinds.
Recent research has revealed that even babies in the womb are susceptible to DNA damage than their mothers from air pollution, despite the added protection of the placenta. The alarmingly high number of harmful genetic mutations reported in the babies of New York has been linked to emissions from vehicles and other sources of urban pollution. A recent study of 265 pairs of non-smoking African-American and Latina mothers and newborns in New York City at the time of delivery have shown that mothers and newborns had the same level of DNA damage from air pollutants. It is possible to measure the level of DNA damage from air pollutants in mothers and newborns by analyzing stretches of mutated DNA, called biomarkers that have been associated with exposure to diesel emissions and other air pollutants.
Automobile smog also greatly contributes to ground level ozone. Ground level ozone is formed when strong sunlight reacts with pollutants from a variety of sources like automobile exhaust fumes, lawn mowers or emissions from power plants and industrial facilities. Research studies have also shown a 3.5 fold increase in the incidence of structural chromosomal abnormalities as deletions and translocations in the fetal cells from pollutants. Diseases like Asthma in infants are often correlated to air pollution. So, when you strive to protect your environment, you protect your baby.