8 factors that can harm your lungs
They say that a person is obliged to ensure his health and longevity himself. Indeed, with a competent approach, minimizing the influence of many harmful factors does not present a particular problem. Almost everyone has the opportunity to go in for sports, choose the optimal mode of work and rest, establish a healthy diet, and give up bad habits. It is more difficult to exclude the ingress of harmful substances into the body through the respiratory system: not everyone can afford to live in an area with good ecology. Most of the townspeople are forced to breathe air polluted by car exhaust, fumes from low-quality building materials and gaseous industrial waste.
The main environmental factors that harm the health of our lungs will be discussed in this article.
Low oxygen content
If a person stays in a tight, unventilated room for a long time, he begins to experience symptoms of the so-called respiratory hypoxia. It usually manifests itself as headache, dizziness, weakness, and impaired coordination of movements. Similar symptoms occur when the volume percentage of oxygen in the inhaled air decreases due to the large amount of impurities. A relative decrease in oxygen concentration also occurs with a strong decrease in atmospheric pressure.
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Gas contamination
The air of cities contains many harmful impurities. The most common ones are:
- carbon monoxide. Penetrating into the body, it forms strong compounds with blood hemoglobin. As a result, the amount of oxygen that can be carried to the tissues is greatly reduced. Oxygen starvation develops, fraught with cardiac disorders, weakening of mental activity and inhibition of metabolism. In high concentrations, carbon monoxide is a poison, similar to cyanides in its effect on the body. Most of this gas enters the atmosphere from automobile exhaust;
- sulfur dioxide. Every year industrial enterprises around the world emit about 150 million tons of this gas into the atmosphere. Sulfur dioxide irritates the mucous membranes of the respiratory tract, causing the development of chronic bronchitis and rhinitis, as well as bronchial asthma. The organs of sight and hearing also suffer. In areas with a high content of sulfur dioxide in the air, there is an increased incidence of thyroid pathologies;
- lead. It is released into the air when gasoline is burned or components in building materials evaporate. Accumulating in the body, lead inhibits the synthesis of hemoglobin and slows down the formation of red blood cells. As a result, chronic intoxication develops, which is manifested by vomiting, constipation, fainting and a general decrease in vitality. Lead is especially dangerous for children, for whom such poisoning can slow down physical and mental development;
- mercury. Metal enters the air mainly from industrial emissions and fumes from finishing materials. About 80% of the inhaled mercury vapor is retained in the tissues of the liver, kidneys, heart, and brain in the form of toxic compounds that gradually poison the body. Poisoning leads to cardiac disorders, the development of pathologies of the nervous system, a sharp decrease in immunity;
- cadmium. Its compounds are considered among the most active carcinogens. Penetrating into the blood, they cause disruptions in phosphorus-calcium metabolism, fraught with the destruction of bones, the development of anemia and lesions of the nervous system. According to some reports, cadmium compounds provoke the appearance of lung cancer. The metal gets into the air from tobacco smoke, combustion products of plastics, powdered fertilizers;
- nickel. Sources of nickel emissions are energy enterprises, mechanical engineering, metallurgical and mining complexes, as well as industries that manufacture construction and finishing materials. Its compounds are toxic. They provoke the development of diseases of the nasopharynx and lungs, as well as skin lesions;
- Hydrocarbons. These are products of combustion of all types of fuel and the work of oil refineries. They can be released into the air from low-quality plastics and products made of resins, adhesives, impregnations for wood, etc. Hydrocarbons cause various lesions of the mucous membranes and skin, disorders of the nervous system;
- Styrene. This is a poisonous organic compound that can be released into the air from solvents, varnishes, adhesives, plastic, rubberized products, linoleum, carpet base. Styrene causes the development of respiratory depression, irritation of the mucous membranes. With prolonged inhalation, it accumulates in the body and poses a risk of mutagenic and carcinogenic effects.
The concentration of harmful impurities in the air increases in the hot season, especially in calm weather. In such a situation, it is recommended to go outside as little as possible.
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Rooms with an abundance of textile accessories
Household dust is a powerful allergen. If the residents rarely carry out wet cleaning in the room, they run the risk of developing bronchial asthma. No less dangerous are mites (or rather, the products of their vital activity), which often settle in old books or objects made of textile materials (upholstered furniture, pillows, carpets, curtains).
It is necessary to regularly get rid of unnecessary items in the living area, often ventilate and vacuum it. Bookshelves must be glazed.
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Crowds of people
Wherever possible, crowded places should be avoided. The point here is not only the stuffiness and lack of oxygen, which are typical for such premises. In crowded places, the risk of contracting infections spread by airborne droplets increases. Especially unpleasant in this respect are shopping and entertainment centers and catering establishments, in which hundreds of people can be at the same time. During the period of seasonal respiratory diseases, medical institutions and transport become dangerous.
It is difficult to refuse to visit such places, but it makes sense to choose certain days and hours for this when the occupancy of the premises is minimal. Parents should be very careful: a walk with a child in the park (even on a cold or rainy day) is in any case preferable to a joint shopping trip.
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Household chemicals
A modern housewife cannot do without household chemicals: they greatly facilitate housework and save time. However, when using powders, pastes and aerosols, do not forget that their harmful components get into the air.
When cleaning, it is necessary to open the window vents. If you are using powdered products, you should be careful not to sprinkle large amounts of mixtures. It is advisable to protect your respiratory system with a medical gauze mask.
When renovating an apartment, use solvents, varnishes and paints with extreme caution. It is important to ventilate the room as often as possible and, if necessary, use a respirator.
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Cramped kitchens with gas stoves
Many Russians live in apartments with very small kitchens. With an area of 5-6 square meters, a working stove can create a concentration of household gas combustion products in a room that is dangerous to health. Therefore, such kitchens must be equipped with hoods.
To avoid such troubles, it makes sense to spend less time in the kitchen, open the window while cooking and remove children from the room.
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A diet supersaturated with simple carbohydrates
It has been proven that lovers of sweets, pastries and fast food often suffer from allergies and respiratory diseases. This is not only due to the high content of food additives in these products. The so-called fast carbohydrates can provoke an inadequate immune response in the body. For those with a sweet tooth, there is a high risk of irritation of the mucous membranes and chronic bronchitis with an asthmatic component.
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Sedentary lifestyle
With moderate physical exertion, ventilation of the lungs increases, breathing deepens, the body gets rid of harmful substances. In this sense, jogging and outdoor games, ski trips and just walking are especially useful. People with a sedentary lifestyle catch colds easily, and seasonal respiratory infections are difficult to tolerate.
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Not everyone has the opportunity to choose a place with a favorable ecological situation for permanent residence. However, everyone is able to optimize the microclimate in their home, establish a diet and minimize the impact of factors hazardous to lung health.
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Maria Kulkes Medical journalist About the author
Education: First Moscow State Medical University named after I. M. Sechenov, specialty "General Medicine".
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