More vehicles expose Lagosians to health problems

Oluwaseun Ayantokun writes on the health hazards being posed to Lagosians as a result of the large number of vehicles in the State of Excellence, which ooze out carbondioxide.

With city life comes its challenges, which ranges from all sorts of crimes, to unfriendly environmental situations and health hazards. Lagos is not exempted from any of these. In fact, it can be said that the state is more at risk of these hazards than most of other cities across the globe.

One of such challenges is the health risk being faced by people who live and work in Lagos. Specifically, as people go about their daily activities, smokes and dusts, which are discharged from various sources, finds their way into people’s nostrils. The smokes come mostly from the exhaust pipes of automobiles, which are on the increase on Lagos roads on daily basis. The situation becomes more complicated by the fact that there are more old vehicles around. It is even like the more the effort of government to discourage the importation of old vehicles into the country, the more they find their way into the state. Speaking to Lagos Life on why there are so many vehicles in the state, a legal practitioner, who would not give his name, said, “It is not easy to work in Lagos without one’s own car. And since people cannot afford expensive brand new cars, they are contented with what people call fairly-used or Tokunbo cars.”

However, private cars owners can be said to be less guilty of polluting the atmosphere, vis-à-vis the contribution of the millions of commercial vehicles to air pollution. Writing on the dangers inhaling smokes emitted from automobile exhaust pipes, Dr. Lawrence Wilson, an environmentalist, stated that smokes are a “source of toxic metal and exposure to them is higher than ever before, as it is one of the causes of ill health”, advising people to avoid contaminated or polluted air as much as possible. Dr. Wilson stated further that most toxic metals are effectively absorbed by inhalation. Auto and particularly aircraft exhaust, industrial smoke and products from incinerators are among the airborne sources of toxic metals and other chemicals. Burned high in the atmosphere, aircraft fuel deposits everywhere and affects everyone on earth,” he said.
He then counselled that city dwellers should use air filters in their homes and offices, which can help trap toxic metals.

“Unfortunately, even rural areas can experience pesticide drift, and also auto and industrial fumes. If you must handle toxic materials at home or at work, wear gloves, masks and other protective gear,” Dr. Wilson counselled. A nurse, Ms. Mercy Chima, who also work in Lagos, identified cigarette and marijuana smoke as part of what constitute airborne health hazards in the state. She said smokes from these sources are high in cadmium, which are found in cigarette paper. For those in agriculture, pesticides used on crops may contain lead, arsenic and other toxic metals. Highlighting further, Dr Wilson said, “toxic metals replace nutrient minerals in enzyme binding sites. When this occurs, the metals inhibit, overstimulate or otherwise alter thousands of enzymes. An affected enzyme may operate at five per cent of normal activity. This may contribute to many health conditions. Toxic metals may also replace other substances in other tissue structures. These tissues, such as the arteries, joints, bones and muscles, are weakened by the replacement process”.

An health website, www.sixwise.com says, “when you walk around or vacuum (sweep), dust particles are stirred up into the air, and along with them come the slew of potential toxic chemicals and other unsavory items like rodent waste and insect parts. You may then breathe in these particles or absorb them through your skin once they settle back down onto a surface you touch. “This is especially concerning if you have small children or infants. Children who crawl and put their fingers in their mouth can ingest 10 grams of dust per day. And, since they're smaller than adults and their systems are still developing, they are at a higher risk from contaminants. Allergies, asthma, itchy eyes, coughing and running noses aside, the specific health effects of house dust depend on which contaminants are in the dust, as well as the levels and how long you have been exposed. In the case of flame retardants (PBDEs), for example, which one U.S. study found were present in every home they tested, they could affect brain development and reproductive hormones.

“And if you think simply inhaling dust isn't enough of an exposure, the researchers found that two-thirds of the PBDEs present in adults' bodies seem to be coming from household dust. In the case of infants, some 90 per cent of their PBDE body level came from house dust”. If the situation is like this, how many Lagosians then can be said to be healthy in city where dust fly on the roads, at home and in most offices.