While advanced technological and infrastructural advances have made life easier for all of us, they have also had a disastrous impact on the environment, particularly air quality. Air pollution has become one of the biggest problems of our time. Fine particles that pollute the air can easily enter your bloodstream and negatively affect your overall health, especially your lungs. According to data compiled by the World Health Organization (WHO), ambient air pollution was the cause of 4.2 million deaths in 2016 and is estimated to cause around 16% of all lung cancer deaths.
So how can you keep your lungs healthy while living in a polluted city? Here we reveal how a few lifestyle tips can keep your lungs healthy.
Follow these 9 tips to keep your lungs healthy and strengthen them to fight pollution:
1. Be aware of pollution forecasts
There are many apps and websites that provide near-accurate predictive reports on outdoor air quality every day. With their color coded system, these apps help you understand how much pollution you will be exposed to when you go out that day.
2. Stay inside on bad AQI days
Spend as much time indoors as you can, especially on days when the pollution forecast or AQI (air quality index) shows an alarming number. In case you need to go outside, wear a high-quality face mask at all times to avoid inhaling harmful airborne particles.
3. Do not exercise outdoors
Whenever pollution levels are high, avoid exercising outdoors. Walking, jogging, or any other strenuous activity that can increase your breathing rate can cause you to breathe in harmful airborne particles.
4. Drink enough water
Drinking enough water can help flush toxins out of your body. It is recommended to drink at least 8 to 10 glasses of water every day to stay hydrated.
Do not reduce your water consumption. Image Courtesy: Shutterstock
5. Maintain a healthy diet
One of the best ways to resist the harmful effects of air pollution is to build your immunity against infection. Critical to this is maintaining a healthy diet rich in vital nutrients like vitamins C and E. Make sure your diet is packed with nutrients to maintain the health of your respiratory tract.
6. Quit smoking
You must stop smoking now, especially if you live in a polluted city. Nothing is more harmful to the lungs than smoking cigarettes. The harmful chemicals in cigarettes combined with the harmful particles in the air can be immensely damaging to your lungs.
7. Get an air purifier
The air inside your home can also be polluted, sometimes even more so than the air outside. For this reason, it is a smart choice to invest in an air purifier. Be sure to keep your air purifier clean and replace your filter often.
8. Practice breathing exercises
Practicing breathing exercises every day can be helpful in improving lung function. Some of these exercises include abdominal breathing and pursed lip breathing.
Breathing properly in the morning can improve lung health. Image Courtesy: Shutterstock
9. Go green!
Be sure to do everything you can to reduce air pollution and improve air quality. To do your part, you can use less energy in your homes, use handheld equipment, and bike, walk, or carpool whenever possible.
Put off
Since air pollution poses such a big risk to lung health and general well-being, it’s best to follow the measures listed above, especially if you live in a polluted city. If you experience any breathing problems or symptoms of lung problems, see a doctor immediately.
Air pollution, if not more so, is just as dangerous and damaging to the human body as smoking has been over the years. It is time that we realize that it is harmful and take preventive measures to protect ourselves from this growing threat.
Source: news.google.com