You know probably that air pollution is one of the major factors causing lungs diseases. The lung diseases like bronchitis, asthma, sinus, and allergies are becoming a leading cause of death among urban dwellers.

The particular matter present in the air is of tiny size which can go deep into the airways. The Particular matter has the potential to cause major damage to the lungs. The effect of pollutants on your lungs varies depending on your exposure to the pollutants. The effect can vary from severe to minor depending upon the region, weather, and season of the year. 

How Lungs Get Effected By Exposure To Air Pollution

The Lungs are the first organ of the body to get affected by exposure to pollution. To prove Dr. Trehan, the popular cardiovascular and cardiothoracic surgeon, compared the lungs of a 55-year-old man living in Delhi and a 52-year-old man living in Himachal.

The comparison showed that the lungs exposed to Delhi pollution were more blacked while the Himachal dweller had a pinker lung.

Dr. Trehan produced the following pictures as evidence of his findings. The blackened lung is of a Delhi dweller and another one is of a Himachal dweller.

You can see for yourself understand how badly lungs are affected by air pollution. Which can further lead to many other organs getting damaged.

You can divide the effects of air pollution on the lungs into two categories:

• Acute effects of air pollution exposure on lungs.
• Chronic effects of air pollution exposure on lungs.

Acute Effects of Air Pollution Exposure On Lungs

The Acute effects of air pollution on the lungs can include reduced lung function occurring after sudden exposure to polluted air. The acute effects on the lungs can go away with time as the lungs recover time.

The sudden exposure to the polluted air can occur in the following symptoms.

• Wheezing
• Excessive Sneezing
• Irritation in the airways
• Shortness of the breath
• Asthma attack in some cases

In this study, done on remote Japan Island, the researchers found out that sudden exposure to air pollutants resulted in decreased pulmonary function of the lungs. The panel of researchers conducted a study on a group of 43 healthy students who were attending the school on an isolated island in Japan.

They measured the lung’s function every day for 1 month regularly along with the concentration of major air pollutants like Particle Matter (PM), Black Carbon (BC), Ozone(O3), and Nitrogen Dioxide.

The study concluded that the presence of pollutants like BC and O3 significantly affected the lungs functions of health students. The students with a history of allergies suffered due to an increase in PM_2.5 and those with Asthma were severely affected by O₃ concentration.

Overall, the study showed that an increase in BC and O3 have acute effects on pulmonary functions of the lungs even on the island without any major or direct source of air pollutants. 

Chronic Effects of Air Pollution Exposure On Lungs

The chronic effects of air pollution include the permanent damage to the lungs caused due to long-term exposure to the pollution. Chronic lung diseases can occur with regular exposure to high levels of pollutants, which can be life-threatening.

The chronic diseases occurring can include:

• Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD)
• Pulmonary hypertension
• Asthma
• Cancer

In this study, the researcher study how exposure of children to pollution results in the development of chronic respiratory diseases among them. The evidence collected with this study proves that exposure to pollutants can result in increased asthma prevalence, new-onset of asthma, risk of development of bronchitis, and wheezing.

Pollution can also cause deficits in lung function growth or airway inflammation among those exposed. This study concludes that adverse respiratory illness can occur in part by genes, tobacco smoke, and stress.

Exposure to Pollution Compared To Smoking

In 2015, physicist Richard Muller and his daughter Elizabeth Muller came up with an innovative approach to compare the health effects of air pollution with cigarettes. After research, they came up with a rough value for the primary pollutant fine particulate matter (PM2.5) to cigarettes equivalent. As per their study, the impact on health because of the day’s exposure to 22 Parts per million (PPM) of PM2.5 is equivalent to smoking one cigarette.

Why Compare Air Pollution With Cigarettes?

The rise in parameters like Air Quality Index (AQI) or PPM concentration can concern a health professional, but it would be difficult for a layperson to understand. This is where the idea for comparison of Air pollution to cigarettes came into being. The comparison with smoking helps in easily understanding the effect of pollution. As the fact that smoking is injurious to health is well known through masses.

The ‘Cigarette Equivalent’ Of Pollution In Indian cities

As per weather channel India, Delhi is the most polluted city in India throughout the year with an annual average of PM2.5 equals to smoking 5.1 cigarettes every day. Lucknow comes second with an average of 4.9 cigarettes every day. Check out the graph from weather channel India below to show the average in major cities of India.   

In cold weather, this average can go as high as 45 cigarettes per day on some days. Which is a horrifying figure that results in many people suffering from lungs related diseases.

Reducing exposure to Air Pollution

It is not possible to completely avoid exposure to Air Pollution as Air is everywhere. But you can take some steps to reduce your exposure to Air pollution. Following are the steps you can take to reduce your exposure to Air pollution.

• Stay update on the quality of air in your locality.
• Avoid areas with worst air quality by avoiding the spending time in area with traffic congestions.
• Reduce outdoor activities at times of poor air quality outdoors.
• Exercise in green spaces.

Conclusion

There is no doubt that air pollution has a severe impact on the lungs. Exposure to Air pollution can cause temporary or permanent damage to your lungs depending upon your exposure.

To help reduce pollution, you can help by starting living an eco-friendly lifestyle and using eco-friendly products. Opting for an eco-friendly lifestyle will help you reduce your carbon footprint and do your bit to help save our planet.

Read more about the adverse effects of the environment on your health here.