AC Side Effects on Health: People who stay in AC all day long should be careful, know from the doctor about 5 major disadvantages of staying in AC for 24 hours

Nowadays, air conditioner (AC) has become an essential part of our lives to escape from the scorching heat, scorching sun and humidity. Be it home, office, car or shopping mall – everywhere we like to keep ourselves in the cool air of AC. AC provides instant relief from the scorching heat, but do you know that living in an AC environment continuously or 24 hours a day can prove to be extremely dangerous for your health? According to Dr. Manav Manchanda, Director and HOD, Department of Respiratory Critical Care and Sleep Medicine, Asian Hospital, Faridabad, staying in AC all day can cause many serious diseases to the body. Especially if the ventilation in your room or cabin is not proper, then this risk increases manifold. Let us know about the main problems caused by AC and their scientific reasons. 1. Respiratory Issues: A big danger for asthma and allergy patients. Staying in a closed AC room for a long time has a very bad effect on the lungs and respiratory system. Reason: Along with cooling the air, AC completely absorbs its natural moisture. Due to dry air, the mucous membrane inside our throat, windpipe and nose dries up. Symptoms: This causes blocked nose, persistent sore throat, dry cough and feeling of heaviness in breathing. For people who already suffer from asthma, bronchitis or sinus allergies, cold and dry air instantly triggers their symptoms, increasing the risk of an attack. 2. Allergy and Severe Sinusitis: Frequent sneezing and runny nose. Many people start sneezing continuously as soon as they turn on the AC. According to Dr. Manav Manchanda, if AC filters are not cleaned on time, dust particles, fungus and bacteria get accumulated in them. When the AC runs, these fine particles spread throughout the room with the air. As soon as people come in contact with it, they start complaining of frequent sneezing, runny nose, severe burning sensation in the eyes and sinus infection. 3. Dry Eye Syndrome: Itching and blurred vision. Nowadays, the problem of ‘Dry Eye Syndrome’ is increasingly being seen in people who stay in AC for a long time. AC greatly reduces the humidity inside the room, due to which the natural tear film of our eyes evaporates rapidly. Due to this, there is a problem of dryness in the eyes all the time, constant burning sensation, redness of the eyes and sometimes blurred vision. People who wear lenses or constantly sit in front of a computer screen have to face this problem the most. 4. Constant Headache & Fatigue: Direct effect of lack of ventilation. If you sit in an AC office or house all day long and there is no way for fresh air to come in, then you will often start feeling headache and heavy fatigue in the evening. Reason: In completely sealed rooms, the same air keeps recirculating (circulating) continuously, due to which the oxygen level inside the room starts partially decreasing and carbon dioxide starts increasing. Effect: Apart from this, when you suddenly go from the extremely cold temperature of the AC to the scorching heat outside, the body temperature becomes unbalanced. Thermal shock also causes severe headache and muscle stiffness (fatigue). 5. Problem of Dry Skin: The glow and natural moisture of the face gets lost. The first and most obvious disadvantage of sitting in AC continuously is visible on our skin. AC sucks the natural moisture from the outer layer of the skin (epidermis). Due to this, the skin becomes dry, lifeless and stretched. If this happens for a long time, the natural glow of the face gets reduced, the lips start cracking and the problem of premature wrinkles and itching starts on the skin. How to avoid side effects of AC? Important tips from Dr. Manav Manchanda Keep the temperature balanced: Never run the AC at a very cold temperature like 16 or 18 degrees. According to Dr. Manchanda, a temperature of 24°C to 26°C is considered the most ideal and safe for the human body. This saves electricity as well as health. Ventilation is important: Switch off the AC completely for at least 1 to 2 hours throughout the day and open the windows and doors of the room, so that fresh air and oxygen can come in and the bacteria in the room can go out. Stay hydrated: While living in AC, you feel less thirsty, but there is lack of water in the body. Therefore, keep drinking sufficient amount of water, coconut water or buttermilk every now and then. Apply good moisturizer and lip balm on skin and lips. Cleaning of filters: Every 15 days, remove the air filter of your AC and clean it thoroughly with water, so that dust and fungus cannot grow in it.