Air pollution: Air pollution continues to wreak havoc in North India and in many cities the Air Quality Index (AQI) has crossed 400 i.e. ‘Severe’ category. In such a situation, people who are taking morning/evening walk in the park to improve their health are unknowingly putting their lives at risk.
Health experts clearly say that walking in this poisonous air is causing serious harm to the body instead of benefits. Let us know what effect walking outside has on your body in this season.
Morning or evening walk can be dangerous
According to media reports, when the Air Quality Index (AQI) crosses 400, air pollution falls into the ‘severe’ category. Taking a morning or evening walk in such poisonous air can cause serious harm to health instead of improving it. In fact, when we walk or run fast, we take more and deeper breaths than usual. Because of this, these dangerous pollutants directly reach the depths of our lungs.
Air pollution can worsen the condition
According to health experts, fine particles like PM2.5 and PM10 present in the air cause inflammation in the respiratory tubes. Due to this, the condition of patients with asthma, bronchitis and COPD can immediately deteriorate and they may experience severe shortness of breath. Apart from this, due to continuous exposure to these toxic particles, the problems of dryness in throat, cough, chest tightness and mucus formation also increase significantly.
Not only this, these pollutant particles also enter our bloodstream through the lungs. This can cause the blood to thicken and the blood vessels to swell, which significantly increases the risk of heart attack or stroke. Also, breathing polluted air activates the body’s stress response, which can cause a sudden increase in blood pressure.
Along with this, toxic gases present in the air (such as nitrogen dioxide and ozone) affect the outer layer of the eyes, causing severe burning, redness and itching in the eyes. At the same time, due to poisonous smog, the pores of the skin get clogged, which can cause problems like allergies, dryness and rashes on the face. It is very common to feel lightheaded, dizzy, and extremely tired after returning from a walk, due to insufficient oxygen reaching the body and gases like carbon monoxide.
What to do in such situation?
According to experts, as long as AQI remains above 300-400, do not go out for a walk in the park or on the streets. Instead, do yoga, stretching, Zumba or walk on the treadmill indoors. If for some reason it is very important to go out, then avoid going out in the morning, because during this time the layer of pollution is the densest and lowest.
After the sun rises, the level of pollution in the afternoon or evening is slightly less than in the morning. Keep in mind that normal clothes or surgical masks cannot stop these fine and dangerous particles (PM2.5) present in the air. Therefore, always use a well-fitting N95 or N99 mask when going out.