There is smog right outside your window and in Punjab, and it isn’t going anywhere soon. Here is all you need to know about it and its harmful effects to protect yourself and your family from it.
WHAT IS SMOG?
Smog is a harmful mixture of fog, dust and air pollutants such as nitrogen oxides, volatile organic compounds, etc. which combine with sunlight to form a dense layer of ground-level ozone.
HOW IS SMOG FORMED?
Smog is a form of air pollution that mainly consists of ozone, along with harmful substances like sulphur dioxide, nitrogen dioxide, carbon monoxide and PM10s, which can find their way deep into our lungs.
Smog can be caused by:
- Large amounts of coal-burning in an area
- Slash-and-burning of crops (a major source in Delhi)
- Smog-forming pollutants generate from automobile exhausts, power plants, fireworks, even paint, hairspray, charcoal starter fluid, and plastic popcorn packaging.
HOW DOES SMOG EFFECT YOUR BODY?
- Inhaling smog over a long span of time can inflame your breathing passage, much like cigarette smoking.
- It can decrease your lungs’ working capacity, leading to shortness of breath, chest pain, wheezing, coughing, discomfort in deep-breathing, asthma attacks if you are already a patient.
- Smog can dry out the protective membranes of your nose and throat.
- It can jeopardize your body’s ability to resist infection, hence, increasing your susceptibility to illness.
- Smog can cause fatal pulmonary diseases such as lung cancer.
HOW CAN YOU PROTECT YOURSELF FROM SMOG?
- Use a face mask with pollutant filter
- Avoid congested areas and Avoid exercising outdoor
- Include broccoli and sprouts in your meal, they help to excrete toxins associated with ozone air pollution
- Green tea, tulsi, ginger and cinnamon also helps to reduce the toxins of air pollution
- To reduce and rejuvenate the lungs, include oregano, orange peel, eucalyptus and peppermint in the diet Including vitamin C in diet
- Fruits such as oranges, strawberries, apples and watermelons are rich sources of vitamin C
- Spicy foods can also kick out allergies from your body
Source: IndiaToday
