Poisoned people

On average, an infant of six months drinks almost 10 times more water than the average adult, inhales almost twice the volume of air and, between the ages of one and five, eats three to four times more food per unit of body weight than an adult. Such consumption means children have a high degree of exposure to the environment, which makes them extremely prone to environment-related morbidity and mortality. According to estimates of the World Health Organisation (WHO), which has declared a 'healthy environment for children' the theme of this year's World Health Day (7 April), over five million children die every year due to illnesses and other conditions caused by the environment in which they live, learn and play.

The nature of a child's susceptibility is closely associated with the socio-economic conditions of the country in which he or she lives. Poor countries are often unable to provide adequate sanitation and drinking water, and children are at high risk to develop health problems as a result. The toxins and the pathogens with which a child comes in contact thus, disrupt normal physiology and biological functioning. Research suggests that over 40 percent of the global disease burden arising from environmental factors may fall on children under the age of five, who constitute only about 10 percent of the world's population.