(State Dept./Julia Maruszewski)

呼吸不清洁的空气不仅仅造成嗓子不舒服，而且可引发严重的疾病，因为温室气体和空气中的微粒会破坏人体的肺脏，导致哮喘等疾病，儿童和成人都不可幸免。此外，空气污染还会造成人体各类器官的损害。

研究空气质量问题的专家拉什德∙沙尔克（Rashid Shaikh）告诉我们，“室外空气污染是全世界最严重的杀手之一，会缩短人的寿命。据估计，空气污染每年导致全世界约300万人死亡。”

但是，人们也有办法对付空气污染：使用低硫燃油和柴油颗粒过滤器可以打幅度减少污染物，从而挽救人们的生命。

This is what dirty air does to your body

It’s worse than getting a scratchy throat. Breathing greenhouse gases and airborne particulate matter can make you seriously ill. These pollutants damage children’s developing lungs and cause asthma in children and adults alike. And that’s not all, as this diagram shows.

“Outdoor air pollution is among the topmost killers of the world in terms of shortening people’s life span, and it is estimated that it causes around 3 million deaths worldwide each year,” said air quality expert Rashid Shaikh. But solutions are available: Low-sulfur fuels and diesel particulate filters can drastically cut harmful pollutants — and save lives.