Evaluating smog awareness and preventive practices among Pakistani general population: a cross-sectional survey

ABSTRACT

Smog pollution is one of the serious public health concerns worldwide. This study aimed to evaluate the awareness and preventive practices of smog among general population belonging to one of the industrialized cities (Lahore) of Pakistan. A cross-sectional survey was carried out among 607 individuals using a 46-item self-administered questionnaire. Data was analyzed using SPSS (version 20.0). The overall adequate knowledge was 74% (n = 449). Majority of individuals having Science qualifications (89.4%) exhibited adequate knowledge of smog as compared to those with Arts qualifications (OR; 4.73, p-value < 0.001). Significant associations were observed between the practice and family income (OR; 1.710, p-value = 0.004), educational group (OR; 1.648, p-value = 0.011), employment status (OR; 0.371, p-value < 0.001) and smoking history (OR; 0.260, p-value < 0.001). Respondents having good family income were following several preventive measures to avoid interaction with smog pollution. Government and environmental health agencies in Pakistan should take steps to improve the awareness and preventive practices of masses particularly of those with non-science qualification and low income to avoid adverse outcomes associated with smog pollution.

Abbreviations: CDGL: City District Government of Lahore; WHO: World Health Organization; EPA: Environmental Protection Agency; USA: United States of America; SPSS: Statistical Program for Social Sciences

KEYWORDS:

• Smog
• air
• pollution
• knowledge
• practice
• perception

Acknowledgments

The authors are grateful to the study population for their precious time and valuable participation in the study. The authors pay deepest gratitude to Mr. Muhammad Usman, Mr. Irfan Younas, Mr. Asad Ullah Ghalib, Mr. Jasim Naveed, Mr. Nouman Shakir, Mr. Usman Nazir and Mr. Raja Hamza for helping the authors in data collection and providing consistent support thoroughly.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Consent for publication

Not applicable.

Data availability statement

The datasets used/analyzed in the study can be available from corresponding author ([email protected]) upon reasonable request.

Author contributions

Designed the experiment: ZS, HS. Performed the study: UA, MY Statistically analyzed the data: UA, FKH. Wrote the paper: MY, MS. Critically revised the manuscript: MAH. All the authors revised the final manuscript and gave approval for publication.

Additional information

Funding

The authors report no source of funding or financial support.