800,000 Canadians to die due to pollution by 2031

OTTAWA — The Canadian Medical Association is warning that the number of deaths related to air pollution is set to soar, with a cumulative death toll of 800,000 Canadians by 2031.

The vast majority of those deaths will be among people aged 65 years and older because they are more vulnerable to heart problems, the group said in a study released today.

Association president Brian Day says the number of people in that vulnerable zone will grow as the population ages.

“We have a very high percentage of baby boomers who will hit 65 in the next three or four years and then keep hitting 65,” he said.

The association said 21,000 Canadians, mostly seniors, will die this year from a combination of short- and long-term exposure to air pollution. It predicts the annual death toll will rise 83% to 39,000 deaths a year by 2031.

The majority will die from heart and lung conditions caused by years of breathing dirty air, the study said.

2,700 DEATHS

However, nearly 2,700 people will die from short-term exposure this year. The study predicts deaths from short-term exposure will ramp up to 4,900 people a year by 2013.

Prolonged exposure to air pollution damages the muscle cells in the arteries of the heart, causing them to harden, said Ted Boadway, the association’s technical adviser on health and environment.

Meanwhile, short-term exposure to smog thickens blood, which is then more likely to clog arteries and produce heart attacks and strokes, he added. Smog and poor air quality are also expected to strain our medical system.

The study predicts that 18,000 people will be admitted to hospital with the effects of air pollution in 2031, up from 11,000 this year, while ER visits will climb to 152,000 from 92,000 over the same period.

The study also says air pollution will send 940,000 people to doctors’ offices in 2031, up from 620,000 visits this year.

Pollution is also expected to cost $8 billion this year in medical bills and productivity. By 2031, these costs will have accumulated to total more than $250 billion.