The environment includes the air we breathe, and it can have a big effect on health. People with lung disease may have more breathing problems from polluted air. Outdoor and indoor air with high levels of some gases and dust may cause breathing trouble even in healthy people. Knowing what is in the air and how to lower the risk of harmful effects are important for your lung health.
Air pollution is what we call the dust and gases mixed in outdoor air. Pollution comes from natural events and human activity. Burning fossil fuels in cars and trucks or industry releases tiny particles and chemicals that mix with the air and can affect the breathing of people who live near busy roads or factories. Inhaling smoke from forest fires or volcanoes can be very dangerous. These natural events can pollute the air over great distances. This kind of severe air pollution often means people must leave their homes and neighborhoods completely until the air is safe again. High levels of air pollution can cause cough, shortness of breath and increase the risk of infections. People with lung diseases like asthma or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) may have more severe issues from air pollution that may even lead to hospitalization.
Indoor air quality can also cause or worsen lung disease. Many factors can lead to low indoor air quality including smoke from tobacco or cooking, cleaning chemicals, pets and mold. Poor ventilation, or how well the indoor air is replaced with fresh outdoor air, often lowers indoor air quality. Less ventilation in buildings can also increase the spread of infection including the virus that causes COVID-19. People who have allergies and/or asthma are more likely to get sick with symptoms of trouble breathing, cough, wheezing, stuffy nose or itchy eyes from indoor air quality problems.
We can’t always choose our environment and the air we breathe. The effects of air pollution and air quality can result in different levels of lung health between groups based on where we live, work, or go to school. The government and other groups like ATS keep track of air pollution levels and post this information on the web where you can also find out about kinds of masks that may lower risk from air pollution. Looking for and removing sources of poor air quality and keeping windows open to increase ventilation are helpful tips to improve indoor air quality. We can all help lower the health effects of outdoor air pollution by supporting clean air policy at the local and National level.
