9 out of 10 people worldwide breathe polluted air, causes 1 in 9 deaths, 14 out of 15 most polluted cities are in India

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Washington Post: As China cleans up its act, India’s cities named the world’s most polluted
India’s capital, New Delhi, choked by rising automobile emissions and construction dust, was named Wednesday the world’s most polluted megacity by the World Health Organization, which analyzed the levels of the pollutant PM10 in the air in cities with populations above 14 million between 2010 and 2016.
Greater Cairo was the second most polluted large city. India’s other megacity of Mumbai ranked fourth on the list and Beijing fifth.

Nine out of 10 people around the globe are breathing polluted air, the study said, and air pollution is responsible for the deaths of 7 million people worldwide each year, most of them living in Asia and Africa. Of those deaths, 3.8 million were from indoor air pollution from unhealthy cook stoves, a huge problem in India.
Former perennial offender China, in response to citizen outrage, has taken steps to clean up its air, shuttering or reforming factories and reducing its coal consumption in favor of renewable energy. The moves helped improve air quality in Beijing and elsewhere but at a cost — many poor people were denied coal heat during winter or lost jobs.
The World Health Organization’s head of public health, Maria Neira, told the Reuters news agency that India should follow China’s lead.

WHO News release: 9 out of 10 people worldwide breathe polluted air
2 May 2018, Geneva - Air pollution levels remain at dangerously high levels in many parts of the world. New data reveals that 9 out of 10 people breathe air containing high levels of pollutants. like black carbon which penetrate deep into the lungs and cardiovascular system.
WHO estimates that around 7 million people die every year from exposure to fine particles in polluted air that lead to diseases such as stroke, heart disease, lung cancer, chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases and respiratory infections, including pneumonia.

The Global Conference on Air Pollution and Health, 30 October - 1 November 2018 is the first-ever global event to focus on both Air Pollution and Health.

Participants will include Ministers of Health and Environment and other national government representatives; representatives of intergovernmental agencies, health professionals, other sectors (e.g. transport, energy, etc.), as well as from research, academia and civil society.

Invisible killer
Air pollution is an invisible killer that lurks all around us, preying on the young and old. Learn how it slips unnoticed past our body's defenses causing deaths from heart attack, strokes, lung disease and cancer.

Brain and air pollution
34% of all stroke deaths are attributable to air pollution. Air pollution causes 2.2 million deaths from stroke every year.

Heart and air pollution
27% of all heart disease deaths are attributable to air pollution. Air pollution causes 2 million deaths due to heart disease every year.

Lungs and air pollution
37% of all lung cancer deaths are attributable to air pollution. Air pollution causes 1.7 million deaths due to lung disease and cancer every year.

Air pollution - a leading cause of NCD deaths
Most air pollution-related deaths are from non-communicable diseases (NCDs). In terms of global disease burden, air pollution is the cause of over one-third of deaths from stroke, lung cancer, and chronic respiratory disease, and one-quarter of deaths from ischaemic heart disease.

Air pollution and health
From smog hanging over cities to smoke inside the home, air pollution poses a major threat to health and climate. The combined effects of ambient (outdoor) and household air pollution cause about 7 million premature deaths every year, largely as a result of increased mortality from stroke, heart disease, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, lung cancer and acute respiratory infections.

More than 80% of people living in urban areas that monitor air pollution are exposed to air quality levels that exceed WHO guideline limits, with low-and middle income countries suffering from the highest exposures, both indoors and outdoors.

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Photo courtesy BreatheLife, WHO / Washington Post