Patients visiting many London hospitals will experience illegal levels of air pollution, according to an analysis published today.
Many large teaching hospitals are located in areas with air pollution well above legal limits, according to the report in The BMJ.
The findings were published on the UK’s first National Clean Air Day.
The King’s College researchers found that 74% of medical facilities in inner London were in areas with excessive levels of nitrogen dioxide. In outer London this applied to about 10% of centres.
The researchers say that London’s air is "toxic and the harms the most vulnerable of us."
London mayor Sadiq Khan promised more electric buses and space for walkers and cyclists.
The president of the Royal College of Paediatric and Child Health Professor Neena Modi added: “London’s air is adding to the city’s health burden and disproportionately affecting children. Exposure to air pollutants during pregnancy affects babies’ development before they are born.
"Children are also particularly vulnerable so action to reduce air pollution is urgently needed to protect their health and help prevent illnesses such as asthma and pneumonia.”
BMJ 15 June 2017 [abstract]
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