The Rich Breathe Easier Than the Poor
A new study shows that disparities in pulmonary health between the rich and poor have been widening for six decades, setting the stage for vastly unequal, devastating outcomes during the pandemic. The rich quite literally breathe easier than the rest of us.
In a recent study, researchers found that the gap in survey data between wealthy and poor respondents’ pulmonary functioning has widened since 1971. (@O_Lypa / Getty Images)
The first recognized appearance of smog occurred in the summer of 1943 in Los Angeles, which was then experiencing a rapid automobile-driven development boom. Visibility was reduced to just three city blocks, and the noxious substance in the air caused a burning sensation in the eyes and lungs.
American air quality got worse before it got better. Though eighty million Americans still live in counties with unhealthy levels of air pollution, the overall trend has been down since its peak around 1970 thanks to regulations designed to curb emissions.
Over the same period, smoking rates have precipitously declined. Meanwhile, new workplace regulations have taken aim at indoor air quality. You would think, given both improved outdoor and indoor air quality and less smoking, that US lung health trends would point dramatically upward. But the benefits of this trend haven’t been equally distributed.
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