A/HRC/43/30 endocrine dysfunction, lifelong respiratory or cardiovascular disease, and cancer in the prenatal and early childhood periods.25 19. The rapid rise in pollutants in children’s environments has been accompanied by increasing global incidences of cancer, diabetes and asthma, among other health problems. Approximately 800 chemicals are known or suspected disruptors of the normal functioning of human endocrine systems.26 Humans are most sensitive to endocrine disruption during early childhood and puberty. 27 The connection between childhood exposure to particular toxicants and the associated health and human rights harm is not always traceable, as health effects may not become manifest until much later. Information about the exposure to and effects of these substances is typically not required by law or regulations or provided by the relevant actors, highlighting the importance of accountability and prevention. 20. States must prevent childhood toxic exposure to protect children’s rights to life, survival, development, health and bodily integrity.28 The intrusion of toxic substances into children’s bodies cannot be reversed, so prevention must be the primary approach. 29 National policies continue to focus on the risks accompanying exposure rather than on preventing exposure.30 Air pollution 21. Air pollution occurs when toxic substances in the air are at levels that pose a health risk. As many as 93 per cent of children live in environments where air pollution exceeds WHO ambient air quality guidelines for particulate matter; 630 million of those are children under 5 years of age. Children in low- and middle-income countries, where household air pollution from cooking and ambient air pollution combined cause more than 50 per cent of acute lower respiratory infections in children under 5, are seriously affected.31 22. High air pollution levels are associated with chronic respiratory infections, lung disease, cancer, adverse birth and pregnancy outcomes, asthma and other health issues, as well as lung damage, permanent damage to developing brains and problems in respect of physical, cognitive and neurological development.32 23. Air quality continues to deteriorate worldwide while industrialization and urbanization trends continue. 33 Indoor and outdoor pollution levels tend to be highest in developing countries34 but can be dangerously high also in developed countries.35 Contaminated water 24. Water pollution contributes to intestinal and parasitic infections, including schistosomiasis, which gravely affect physical and cognitive development. These infections and diarrhoea impair the digestive system’s functioning and prevent the absorption of nutrients essential for growth and development. 36 Unsafe water contributes to food 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 WHO, Inheriting a Sustainable World. WHO and United Nations Environment Programme, State of the Science of Endocrine Disrupting Chemicals: 2012 (2013), p. viii. WHO, Don’t Pollute My Future!, p. 6. Committee on the Rights of the Child, general comment No. 13 (2011) on the right of the child to freedom from all forms of violence. A/HRC/33/41, paras. 29 and 34. Submission from Child Rights International Network. WHO, Air Pollution and Child Health: Prescribing Clean Air (2018), p. 2. UNICEF, Danger in the Air: How Air Pollution May Be Affecting the Brain Development of Young Children Around the World (2017). UNICEF, Clear the Air for Children (2016), p. 24. Ibid. https://unearthed.greenpeace.org/2017/04/04/air-pollution-nurseries/; https://newmobility.news/ 2018/03/15/greenpeace-air-polluted-in-6-out-of-10-belgian-schools/. WHO, Don’t Pollute My Future!, p. 5. 5