The festival of Diwali is celebrated with great pomp in the country. From children to elders, everyone looks forward to this festival throughout the year. But keep in mind that this Diwali brings happiness to your home, not sickness.
Although Diwali is a festival of lights, in the last few years it has become less of a festival of lights and more of fireworks. Nowadays Diwali celebrations are considered incomplete without crackers. Fireworks light up the entire sky for a few moments, but they adversely affect our environment and health.
One of the disadvantages of burning firecrackers is that it increases the amount of dust and pollutants in the air. After burning firecrackers, dangerous chemicals like sulphur, zinc, copper and sodium are released into the air and enter our lungs through breathing. These chemicals cause serious damage to the environment as well as health.
Talking about accidents due to firecrackers, according to the fire department, in the year 2023, there were more than 200 fire incidents in Delhi alone, when many people were seriously injured.
So, today In 'health water' We will talk about how the chemicals used in crackers affect our health. You will also learn that-
- How do fireworks affect the environment?
- How to keep small children safe from fireworks?
- What should asthma patients do to avoid firecracker damage?
Expert – Dr. S. Jade. Jafri, Pulmonologist & Allergist (Indore)
Presence of dangerous chemicals in crackers
First of all, see in the graphic below which hazardous chemicals are used in making crackers.
How do crackers affect our health? Bursting crackers increases the risk of respiratory diseases. It can also cause many infectious diseases. An already ill person's condition may worsen. The toxic fumes of firecrackers can suddenly cause a new disease.
Find out which chemicals used in crackers cause which diseases from the graphic below-
Pollution and disease threat from crackers The chemicals used in crackers are not for human consumption. The human body is not designed to inhale them. If for some reason these chemicals enter our body through air and breath then the amount of toxic elements in the body will increase and these toxic elements will cause diseases.
A report by the World Health Organization (WHO) states that every year around 7 million people die worldwide due to air pollution. According to a study published in 2018 in the National Library of Medicine, fireworks have the worst impact on air quality and affect our lungs and health.
Check out the graphic below to see which diseases increase the risk of dangerous chemicals in crackers.
Cracker smoke dangerous for asthma patients Crackers have the biggest effect on asthma patients. Asthma is a chronic disease that causes difficulty in breathing. It can happen to people of any age. However, its risk is higher in the elderly.
According to WHO, approximately 33.9 million people suffer from asthma worldwide. In 2016, asthma caused 417,918 deaths worldwide. According to the Global Asthma Report, 2022, there are about 3.5 crore asthma patients in India. Air pollution is very dangerous for asthma patients. So, it is very important for them to stay away from crackers and smoke.
Check the graphic below to see what precautions an asthmatic should take during Diwali.
Firecrackers are also a health hazard for small children As the body of young children is in the stage of development, the smoke of firecrackers and the pollution caused by it affects their body worse than that of adults. Their lungs, brain and body cells are still forming. If the child is over exposed to polluted air, chemicals and smoke at this stage, its development can also be affected. Sometimes it can cause serious diseases or developmental defects.
Apart from this, the health of a mother who is breastfeeding her child is also very fragile at this time. If environmental toxins enter the mother's body and make her sick, it can also affect the baby. Therefore, small children especially need to be kept away from fireworks.
Take these steps to protect children from firecracker pollution
To protect children from the ill effects of firecrackers, some things should be kept in mind.
Image Credit: (Divya-Bhaskar): Images/graphics belong to (Divya-Bhaskar).
