Thousands of children treated at North Mid for breathing problems last year

Campaign group Mums for Lungs has called for more action to tackle air pollution as Edmonton hospital tops table for breathing-related attendances

The accident and emergency unit at North Middlesex University Hospital

North Mid recorded more than 10,000 instances of children needing treatment for breathing difficulties last year, an environmental campaign group has found.

Mums for Lungs, a group of parents campaigning against air pollution in major cities, obtained data through the Freedom of Information Act which revealed North Middlesex University Hospital to have the busiest accident and emergency (A&E) department for children with respiratory issues.

Last year, the Edmonton hospital recorded 10,393 paediatric respiratory A&E attendances, while Alder Hey Children’s Hospital in Liverpool recorded 9,525 and University Hospital of Derby and Burton recorded 7,891.

Mums for Lungs campaigner Ruth Fitzharris, who is lives in Haringey, said: “These figures are truly shocking. We need urgent action from central government to fix this situation, our children’s health is at stake.

“Parents across the country are deeply worried by this issue and deserve to see significant improvements in air quality as soon as possible. I’ve cared for my son through multiple serious asthma attacks, it’s been so difficult to deal with.

“Young lungs need clean air.”

Asked to respond to the findings Dhruv Rastogi, clinical lead for paediatric asthma at North Mid, said: “North Mid has one of the busiest children’s emergency departments in London. Many of the children we see with breathing difficulties are babies and toddlers with viral infections, which air pollution, poor housing and smoke exposure can make worse.

“We work with families, schools and GPs to keep children well at home. This includes personalised asthma care plans, support from community asthma nurses, and moving suitable children onto newer single-inhaler Smart [single maintenance and reliever] therapy, which reduces serious asthma attacks.

“We also encourage vaccines that protect young children, such as RSV vaccination in pregnancy and the children’s flu vaccine.

“Our hospital is smoke-free and we support greener travel, but tackling pollution from roads like the A406 [North Circular] needs action across the whole system.”

Mums for Lungs found that in total, across eleven major English cities, 213,341 children were hospitalised with breathing difficulties last year. The youngest children were most affected, with babies and toddlers aged up to three accounting for over half (57%) of those admitted to hospital last year.

The campaign group says children are particularly vulnerable to air pollution because their lungs are still developing and they breathe more air relative to their body size than adults. Exposure to pollutants including nitrogen dioxide and fine particulate matter is associated with respiratory illness and can exacerbate conditions such as asthma.

Earlier this month, London was again found to have breached legal limits of toxic nitrogen oxide (NO2) air pollution, following a compliance assessment for 2025. It represented a setback for City Hall, which last year hailed the outcome of the 2024 assessment when London met the legal limit for the first time – a result Mayor of London Sir Sadiq Khan credited to the success of the Ultra Low Emission Zone (Ulez) in driving down emissions.

Jemima Hartshorn from Mums for Lungs said: “London being declared to be illegally polluted again – failing to comply with limits that should have been met 15 years ago. This has to be a wake-up call for our mayor to continue the work he started which has seen pollution levels fall.

“We need to ensure we can swap the most polluting diesel vehicles for cleaner options: cars, vans and buses. And government needs to stand up to industry and ensure non-essential wood burning is phased out without any further delay.”

Dr Elizabeth Wan, a resident doctor in North London and mother of a child with asthma, added: “As a local doctor and a mum, these numbers represent so much anxiety, pain and sadness for so many families. Children in London deserve better – they should not be punished with poor health simply because of where they live.

“We need cleaner air for all of us, and we need it urgently.”

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