The Punjab Health Department’s data has revealed that the record-breaking smog in the province has pushed nearly two million residents to seek medical help for respiratory and related health issues within just one month.
This extensive air pollution crisis has hit Lahore particularly hard, with the city logging over 126,000 cases of respiratory illness.
In the 24-hour period from Wednesday to Thursday alone, Punjab recorded 68,917 cases of respiratory and chest-related diseases, including 6,236 from Lahore, where the Air Quality Index (AQI) reached an alarming 1,100 by Thursday night.
Experts warn that prolonged exposure to such high levels of toxic air pollutants can trigger severe respiratory diseases, oxidative stress, and inflammation in human cells, which may lead to serious long-term health consequences like depression, impaired growth in children, and potentially cancer.
This marks the first time Punjab’s health department has gathered comprehensive data to measure the smog’s impact. The data tracks five key health issues—respiratory conditions, asthma, ischemic heart disease, stroke, and conjunctivitis.
However, it likely underestimates the true impact, as it excludes unreported cases, with many people self-medicating or visiting informal healthcare providers instead of hospitals.
In the past month, nearly 120,000 cases of asthma, 13,773 cases of heart disease, over 5,000 stroke cases, and more than 11,000 conjunctivitis cases were documented across Punjab, underscoring the urgent need for air quality improvements to safeguard public health.