Air pollution and children

While exposure to ozone air pollution causes adverse health effects in most people, children are especially susceptible to these effects. Children spend significantly more time outdoors, especially in the summertime when ozone levels are the highest.

National statistics show that children spend an average of 50 percent more time outdoors than do adults.

Children spend more time engaged in vigorous activity (i.e., exercise). Such activity results in breathing in more air, and therefore more pollution being taken deep into the lungs. 

Children have a higher breathing rate than adults relative to their body weight and lung surface area. This results in a greater dose of pollution delivered to their lungs. Most biological air pollution damage is related to the dose of pollution inhaled in relation to the body weight and surface area of the target organ.

Even when children experience significant drops in lung function, they do not seem to suffer or report some of the acute symptoms, such as coughing, wheezing or shortness of breath, associated with ozone exposure in adults. Thus, children are not likely to receive or may not understand the biological warnings to reduce their ozone exposure by stopping their exercise or moving indoors.