Staying Healthy Under Air Pollution, How to Do it?

The level of air pollution in many big cities in Indonesia, especially Jakarta and its surroundings is increasingly worrying. This is because air pollution can be bad for health, especially the increased risk of lung disease.

What’s more, the fact of the World Health Organization (WHO) notes that approximately 92% of the world’s population breathes poor quality air, which causes each year there are 7 million deaths (2 million in Southeast Asia) due to outdoor and indoor air pollution. What are the diseases caused by air pollution and how to prevent it?

Diseases caused by air pollution

1. Acute Respiratory Infection (ARI) – Acute respiratory infections are not only caused by bacterial or viral infections in the body, but also due to air pollution. Toxic substances such as carbon monoxide, particulates, nitrogen dioxide and sulfur dioxide are examples of air pollution compositions that can easily disturb your respiratory organs.
2. Asthma – Air pollution is one of the triggers for an outbreak of asthma. This is dangerous because asthma is a chronic respiratory disease followed by symptoms of difficulty breathing, coughing, and chest pain due to the narrowing of the chest muscles.
3. Bronchitis – This respiratory disorder occurs due to inflammation of the lining of the bronchial tubes. This disease appears with symptoms of cough with phlegm or no phlegm at all. If it has phlegm, generally the phlegm is clear, greenish, and yellowish. Usually bronchitis is caused by a viral infection and air pollution can make it worse.
4. Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) – is a type of respiratory disease caused by damage to the lungs. Exposure to outdoor and indoor pollution can disrupt lung performance and increase the risk of COPD. The symptoms themselves are almost the same as bronchitis, but can be prolonged.
5. Lung cancer – Air pollution contains 6 substances that are harmful to health, one of which is carbon monoxide. In carbon monoxide there are carcinogens that are prone to trigger lung cancer, especially for the elderly over the age of 40 years. This disease is also risky for people who are often exposed to substances from industry, and often are in the street or room.
6. Heart disease and stroke – Smooth blood flow and flexible conditions are a sign that blood vessels are healthy. However, the impact of air pollution can cause blood vessels to become stiff and narrow. This condition triggers stroke and heart disease because blood flow to the brain or other organs becomes blocked, especially if followed by an unhealthy lifestyle.

How to prevent diseases caused by air pollution

Even though it looks clean, the air that you breathe every day can actually increase your risk of various respiratory illnesses. Therefore, you should not underestimate this condition. Try practicing healthy tips against air pollution, as follows:

1. Use a mask to reduce the entry of pollution into the respiratory tract and lungs
2. Avoid activities in areas with unhealthy air quality
3. Apply clean and healthy lifestyle, such as consumption of nutritious food, adequate rest, hand washing, and not smoking
4. When driving by car, you should close all windows and turn on the air conditioner in re-circulate mode
5. Do not light the fire source in the room
6. Place plants or air purifier equipment (air purifiers) to maintain indoor air quality
7. If you experience respiratory complaints due to frequent outdoor activities and frequent exposure to pollution, you should immediately consult a doctor.

For those of you who are still healthy, it is also advisable to have regular lung health checks to reduce the risk of lung disease that can attack by registering yourself at https://mcu.siloamhospitals.com. Don’t forget to continue to practice healthy tips against pollution, prevent before it’s too late.

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