Amruta Nori-Sarma
Amruta Nori-Sarma
Postdoctoral Research Associate
Brown University School of Public Health
Brown University School of Public Health
My research focuses on differential health impacts of environmental exposures in urban poor communities, across different dimensions of vulnerability. I believe that EJ issues can be approached from a variety of perspectives - both by identifying hotspots of risk to environmental exposure and risk differentials based on race/ethnicity, SES, or other vulnerabilities; or also focusing on health outcomes that disproportionately impact vulnerable communities.
Type of work: Abstract
An extensive body of research has demonstrated that air pollution exposure is associated with adverse health outcomes. Urban air quality remains a major concern for both public health officials and the general public, particularly in developing countries where baseline exposures are high. In India, air quality public awareness campaigns are major efforts of governments at every level. Yet, our understanding of relationships between ambient air pollution exposure, public perceptions of air quality, and concerns about associated health risks is incomplete.
As part of the Burden of Obstructive Lung Diseases (BOLD) cohort project in Mysore, Karnataka, India, we asked 650 respondents in very low-income neighborhoods about their perceptions of air pollution exposures and self-efficacy, or their ability to act to reduce the health effects of air pollution in their community. The primary objective of our study was to examine relationship between the spatial distribution of NO2 exposures, pollution perceptions, and pollution health concerns among an understudied urban poor population, to gauge the best strategies for targeting interventions to reduce the health burdens of air pollution in the city. In our study population, half of the respondents were living in areas at or above the annual average NO2 level recommended by the WHO for health protection. We found that 30 percent of the respondents believed that the air pollution in their own neighborhood was worse than the pollution in nearby neighborhoods, and 80 percent of respondents believe that the air pollution levels in the city of Mysore have been detrimental to their own health. Interestingly, only 1.5 percent of respondents prioritized minimizing disruption of their daily routine due to air pollution, and less than 1 percent of respondents believed that they could act individually or collectively within their community to reduce the impacts of their pollution exposure. Public awareness campaigns should be combined with education on ways the public can protect themselves from the adverse impacts of pollution exposure, and should be tailored explicitly for targeting vulnerable populations such as those living in low-income neighborhoods that experience high ambient air pollution levels.
Work Product: Presentation
Individual Perceptions of Air Pollution Exposure and Associated Health Outcomes in a Low-Income Cohort in Mysore, India
Work Areas:
Air, Climate change, Distribution of environmental hazards, Health disparities, Temperature and healthWork File:
amruta_nori-sarma.pdf