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Cited by 1,097Environmental Justice and Health DisparitiesAir Quality and Health ImpactsHealth disparities and outcomes

Socioeconomic Disparities and Air Pollution Exposure: a Global Review

Open access
Hajat, Anjum, Hsia, Charlene, O’Neill, Marie S.·2015·Current Environmental Health Reports
DOI 10.1007/s40572-015-0069-5PMC PMC4626327
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Abstract

The existing reviews and meta-analyses addressing unequal exposure of environmental hazards on certain populations have focused on several environmental pollutants or on the siting of hazardous facilities. This review updates and contributes to the environmental inequality literature by focusing on ambient criteria air pollutants (including NOx), by evaluating studies related to inequality by socioeconomic status (as opposed to race/ethnicity) and by providing a more global perspective. Overall, most North American studies have shown that areas where low-socioeconomic-status (SES) communities dwell experience higher concentrations of criteria air pollutants, while European research has been mixed. Research from Asia, Africa, and other parts of the world has shown a general trend similar to that of North America, but research in these parts of the world is limited.

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  • This issue disproportionately affects vulnerable populations, including low-income communities and the geriatric and pediatric populations.

    “This issue disproportionately affects vulnerable populations, including low-income communities and the geriatric and pediatric populations.”

    From The Burden of Air Pollution on Skin Health: a Brief Report and Call to Action (2024) · cites this paper as [39]

    The Results and Conclusions (page numbers unavailable) report disproportionate air-pollution exposure among many low-SES communities. The paper does not establish the same claim for geriatric or pediatric populations; searches for age-related vulnerability returned no supporting passage outside reference titles. (LLM, conf=0.86)

    Experimental — accuracy not yet measured

  • Existing variations in regional pollution levels can result in unequal distributions of AD exacerbations linked to air pollution from wildfires.

    “Existing variations in regional pollution levels can result in unequal distributions of AD exacerbations linked to air pollution from wildfires [39].”

    From The Burden of Air Pollution on Skin Health: a Brief Report and Call to Action (2024) · cites this paper as [39]

    The Results sections on methodological issues and air pollution exposure assessment describe geographic variation in pollution and how pooled analyses can mask local inequalities. The Introduction also discusses health disparities associated with unequal exposure. The paper does not address wildfire pollution or AD exacerbations, so it does not support that specific application. (LLM, conf=0.85)

    Experimental — accuracy not yet measured

  • High SES individuals often have resources that protect them from elevated exposures to hazards, such as indoor work environments, access to private transportation, living in newer buildings, and often, the ability for climate control and filtration in indoor environments.

    “In contrast, high SES individuals often have resources that protect them from elevated exposures to hazards, such as indoor work environments, access to private transportation, living in newer buildings, and often, the ability for climate control and filtration in indoor environments [94].”

    From The Environmental Determinants of Skin Health: Linking Climate Change, Air Pollution, and the Dermatologic Disease Burden (2025) · cites this paper as [94]

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Authors
Hajat, A., Hsia, C., & O’Neill, M. S.
Affiliations
  • University of Washington (US)
  • University of Michigan (US)
Corresponding author
Hajat, Anjum
ORCID
Venue
Current Environmental Health Reports
Publisher
Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Published
2015-09-18
Volume
2
Issue
4
Pages
440-450
ISSN
2196-5412 (ISSN-L)
DOI
10.1007/s40572-015-0069-5
PMC
PMC4626327
OpenAlex
W1703748868
Cited by
1,097
References
1
Citations by year
2026: 158 · 2025: 173 · 2024: 159 · 2023: 143 · 2022: 155 · 2021: 135 · 2020: 65 · 2019: 44 · 2018: 38 · 2017: 19 · 2016: 5 · 2015: 1
FWCI
8.53
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Licence
www.springer.com/tdm (tdm)
Locations
  • Current Environmental Health Reports (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • Europe PMC (PubMed Central) (acceptedVersion)
  • PubMed Central (acceptedVersion)
Funders
  • National Institutes of Health (5r01es016932-05)
  • Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (R18EH000348)
  • National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (R01-ES016932, R00ES023498, K99ES023498)
  • National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (T42-OH008455))
Topics
  • Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Environmental Justice and Health Disparities
  • Physical Sciences › Environmental Science › Health, Toxicology and Mutagenesis › Air Quality and Health Impacts
  • Social Sciences › Health › Health disparities and outcomes
Keywords
socioeconomic disparities, air pollution exposure, nitrogen oxides, environmental inequality, environmental justice, cross-national comparison
MeSH terms
Air Pollution, Environmental Exposure, Humans, Social Class, Social Justice, Socioeconomic Factors, Global Health, Hazardous Substances, Particulate Matter, Health Status Disparities

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