India, Oct. 22 -- The toxic journey begins in the womb. When mothers are exposed to polluted air during pregnancy, the foetus is at serious risk. The risk escalates into a massive disease burden for infants, children and adolescents, lasting a lifetime. The problem has reached alarming proportions in the Global South, with India bearing the infamy of accounting for a quarter of the global infant deaths- within the first month of birth. Well-established science has defined the biological pathways through which pollutants enter the body and damage organs. These estimates consider not only lower-respiratory infections affecting children but also a much broader range of health impacts. Additionally, children from poorer households are at grea...