Over 25% of Chinese Children Exposed to Polluted Indoor Air

As many as 26.8 percent of Chinese children are exposed to polluted indoor air at home, while almost 13 percent do not have access to proper drinking water, a nationwide survey conducted by the Chinese Environmental Protection Ministry revealed.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) — The survey, released on Saturday and cited by the South China Morning Post covered the years of 2013 and 2014 and assessed pollution exposure patterns in a pool of over 75,500 children.

"The impact of pollution on public health is not only decided by the pollutants’ concentration levels and toxicity, but also closely related to the exposure patterns," Zou Shoumin, a Chinese Environmental Protection Ministry official, explained, as quoted by the South China Morning Post.

According to the ministry's new study, over 13 percent of children in China live less than 1,000 meters (3,280 feet) from factories with high health risks, while over 14 percent live within 50 meters (164 feet) of major roads.

Pollution is a major environmental issue in China. Due to rapid industrialization, pollution levels have increased and have caused serious health problems for the population. According to the World Bank report, over 750,000 people in China die prematurely each year because of air and water pollution.