BREATHING ROOM: LINK BETWEEN AIR QUALITY AND HEALTH

While we typically think of pollution as a lung issue, mounting evidence links dirty air to heart problems

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Let's get one thing straight: that post-pilates glow or morning jog is only as good as the air you're gulping down. You can spritz all the rosewater mist you want and stack your fridge with green juices, but if the air you breathe is laced with microscopic troublemakers, your lungs, and your heart, are on the losing team. In an age of avocado toast and wellness influencers, we often forget the most basic health essential: clean, breathable air. And as research keeps reminding us, this invisible threat is as real as it gets.

A global snapshot

According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), 99 per cent of the global population breathes air that exceeds its guideline limits for pollutants. And these pollutants, such as particulate matter (PM2.5 and PM10), nitrogen dioxide (NO2), ozone (O3), and sulfur dioxide (SO2), don't just irritate your nose; they set off a chain reaction of damage deep inside your body.

In a 2023 article in The Lancet Planetary Health, researchers found that long-term exposure to PM2.5 is associated with increased mortality, not only from respiratory disease but also from cardiovascular causes like heart attacks and strokes. "Fine particulate matter penetrates deep into the lungs and even into the bloodstream, causing systemic inflammation," claims Dr Michael Brauer, professor at the University of British Columbia and co-author of the Global Burden of Disease study on air pollution.

The respiratory link

Air pollution's first and most obvious target is the respiratory system. Breathing in harmful particles causes immediate irritation in the airways, leading to coughing, wheezing, and increased susceptibility to infections. Over time, this escalates into more chronic conditions such as asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), and even lung cancer.