According to World Bank data, “urbanization is progressing much faster in developing countries than in developed countries, and most of the world’s most populous cities are in developing countries. Many of these cities are in Asian countries with low per capita incomes but big populations. These cities have high concentrations of poor residents and suffer from social and environmental problems including severe air pollution” .
Similarly, the low-income and middle-income countries are facing an emerging epidemic of chronic non-communicable diseases in the near future . Lifestyle modifications as well as strengthening primary care in the health system have been considered as the main strategies to tackle chronic diseases in low- and middle-income countries .
We suggest that environmental protection actions, notably for reducing the emission of criteria air pollutants, should be considered for public health measures taken into account for primordial/primary prevention of chronic diseases, especially in developing countries.
The association between air pollution and chronic diseases may be mediated through systemic inflammatory responses. Generation of reactive oxygen species is linked to a variety of environmental factors. The association of air pollution and inflammation/oxidative stress has been demonstrated , even among healthy children who might have the early stages of atherosclerosis.