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00:32How would you describe the chatter around air
00:34pollution? Well I'd say it's cacophony.
00:36It's frustrating
00:38to say the least. Year after year
00:40the same conversation around
00:42who's to be blamed, what could have been done
00:44right and then we forget all about
00:46it. Well the fact of the matter
00:48is that the problems associated
00:50with air pollution do not
00:52go away even if the visible
00:54air in front of us
00:56is presumably clean.
00:58In the sense that if you can't
01:00get the stench of air
01:02pollution, if you can't get the
01:04stink and don't see the smog
01:06doesn't mean the problem associated
01:08with air pollution have vanished
01:10magically, that doesn't happen.
01:12The long term impact of air pollution
01:14is very serious and it
01:16impacts not just our lungs, the
01:18impact is way deeper, it
01:20affects way too many organs.
01:22It in fact has an impact on our fertility,
01:24on our heart health as well.
01:26Our eyes for example
01:28need protection, special
01:30care in these months of
01:32pollution. Smog
01:34affects our eyes in ways you can't
01:36even imagine. Remember
01:38the first thing to get affected when you
01:40step out, when there is extreme pollution
01:42is your eyes. They start to
01:44water, that's a response of your
01:46organ to in fact deal with
01:48the situation in which they feel
01:50they are going to get harmed.
01:52So what do you do to protect
01:54your eyes? Here's
01:56more.
02:02Our eyes, our window to the world
02:04overwhelm and pollution levels
02:06so.
02:08Polluted air is full of harmful particles
02:10like dust, smoke and chemicals.
02:12These tiny particles irritate the
02:14eyes, leading to redness and a
02:16constant urge to drop them.
02:18A 2021 Ames
02:22Delhi study found a 30%
02:24rise in dry eye cases
02:26during peak pollution months.
02:28Data from the
02:30WHO suggests air pollution
02:32related eye irritation
02:34affects millions annually
02:36in urban Asia.
02:38When the air is polluted with
02:40lot of these PM 2.5 particles
02:42they go and touch on the tear film
02:44and the eyes and if there is dryness
02:46then the eyes start to have a burning sensation
02:48some irritation, foreign body sensation
02:50sometimes even redness can come
02:52and reflects watering from the eyes can happen.
02:54Pollution lowers the natural
02:58defenses of your eyes.
03:00Our eyes are protected
03:02by the eyelids which we can see outside
03:04as the skin and then by the tear film
03:06which is a layer, a three layered film
03:08which is covering the corneas of the eyes
03:10whether it is in the form of severe dry eye
03:12or some kind of a scarring of the eyelid
03:14or if some foreign object gets into the eye
03:16and this barrier breaks then infections and irritations in the eye can happen.
03:20Prolonged contact with polluted air may lead to more serious problems like corneal damage
03:28or even cataracts over time.
03:32Air pollution reduces tear film stability
03:34increasing evaporation
03:36urban residents especially those exposed
03:38to heavy traffic zones
03:40report higher prevalence of dry eyes.
03:44When you are within close confined areas
03:46overall
03:48because of the conditioned and controlled environments
03:50like air conditioning or sometimes even air purifiers
03:52there is a decreased humidity
03:54and that causes dryness
03:56because of the higher pollution that is there in the atmosphere
03:58because of the increased amount of dust
04:00that is there in the atmosphere
04:02a lot of construction activity that is going on
04:04all this is also irritating the ice surface.
04:06So how does one protect the eyes?
04:12Try to stay more indoors particularly on very heavily polluted days.
04:16Use purifiers inside to reduce the amount of suspended particulate matter.
04:20Drink more water. Remain hydrated.
04:22You can even wash your eyes or face once a day with clean cool water.
04:26If you are somebody who is going to be in the open riding maybe a two wheeler
04:30then you must wear some protective glasses
04:32so that there is no direct contact
04:34that the eye has with the dry
04:36and polluted environmental air.
04:38Research after research indicates that
04:40air pollution is impacting your heart
04:42adversely.
04:44It is shooting up your blood pressure.
04:46It is leading to inflammation.
04:48And that perhaps is the reason why
04:50just so many people are developing heart disease.
04:52Ismong.
05:02Well it's that time of the year again.
05:04Your eyes will hurt if it isn't hurting already.
05:06You will be switching on air purifiers.
05:08If you haven't already.
05:10And you will not be able to breathe.
05:14Delhi like many cities in the country
05:16have started to see the air quality index dip.
05:20Which means air pollution is worsening.
05:24However, if you think the Delhi's dirty air impacts just your lungs.
05:30Think again.
05:32Studies have established that it is your heart that takes a beating.
05:38All the PM particles less than 2.5 or 2.5 to 10
05:42along with carbon monoxide, sulphur dioxide, nitrogen dioxide
05:46are direct injurious to the inner lining of the blood vessels
05:50causing injurious to the blood vessels.
05:52As a result the blood clots sit on them.
05:54The fat particles sit on them
05:56resulting in blockages
05:58resulting in a thin cap blockage
06:00or a thick cap blockage.
06:02Younger patients will have a thin cap blockage
06:04or 30% blockage.
06:06Elderly patients will have a stable
06:08thick cap blockage.
06:10Doctors have said air pollution causes blockage
06:14of blood flow in arteries and veins
06:16that causes hypertension.
06:18Increasing the risk of heart disease
06:20because harmful ultraviolet rays absorb vitamin D
06:24from the sun and the lack of vitamin D
06:26increases the risk of heart disease.
06:28High levels of air pollution can cause blood clots in the heart
06:32and heart blockages.
06:34And there are long term impacts.
06:36There is stasis of blood, stagnation of blood.
06:40The clots can go to the brain cause a brain stroke
06:44or a heart stroke or a kidney infarction.
06:46Any ejection fraction or heart functioning less than 35%
06:50the risk of sudden cardiac death
06:52is as bad as an end stage cancer disease.
06:56Because of high energy drive,
06:58decreased nitric oxide levels,
07:00the blood vessels become thick,
07:02your requirement of blood pressure medicine goes up,
07:04your sugar levels go haywire.
07:06So these are all long term effects of pollution
07:08which we have to circumvent in one way or the other.
07:12Who are the most vulnerable then?
07:16Who are the vulnerable population for pollution?
07:18Number one it would be smokers.
07:20Even a non-smoker is smoking up to 50 cigarettes a day
07:24thanks to the pollution.
07:26Who are high blood pressure patients,
07:28who are more prone.
07:30People with pre-existing heart disease
07:32are more prone for pollution.
07:34People with uncontrolled diabetes.
07:36People with uncontrolled obesity.
07:38Your BMI is more than 23.
07:40you are more prone for pollution.
07:42Many children and pregnant ladies
07:44and even elderly ladies
07:46whose immunity is low
07:48are more vulnerable for pollution.
07:50Here's what's advised.
07:52Try avoid going out
07:54if the AQI is high.
07:56Always if you have to go out
07:58use an N95 mask always.
08:00Help make sure that you are vaccinated
08:02against pneumococcal vaccine,
08:04a flu vaccine,
08:06depending upon your age category.
08:08If you are having features of heart failure,
08:12fluids needs to be restricted,
08:14salt needs to be restricted.
08:16There is weekly monitoring of urine output
08:18has to be followed.
08:20A weekly monitoring of your weight
08:22has to be followed.
08:23Weight should not be gained
08:24because then you are regaining excess water
08:26that time.
08:27You should know your four numbers well.
08:29Pulse,
08:30blood pressure,
08:31fasting blood sugar
08:32and walking distance
08:34plus your saturation levels.
08:36A lot of questions are now being asked
08:38on why younger people are developing cancer.
08:41It's a disease in which your cells degenerate,
08:44usually seen in the older population.
08:47But younger people are developing cancer now
08:50and it's becoming very, very frequent.
08:53Air pollution has a deep link
08:55with the growing instances of cancer in India and outside.
08:59Here's more.
09:00Living in Delhi is equivalent to smoking 30 cigarettes a day.
09:12And what happens when you actually smoke 30 cigarettes a day?
09:15Cancer.
09:16That is exactly the fallout of Blanket,
09:21a thick smoke laden with PM 2.5 and PM 10 that you and I are breathing.
09:27Pollution is quietly fueling a new wave of cancers.
09:32Bad air means anything when we say AQI is 200, 300 or 400,
09:39which we see in our metro cities like Delhi.
09:42So there are so many carcinogens in that air.
09:45There are microparticles like PM 2.5, PM 10.
09:51They are such small and microscopic particles that when we inhale bad air,
09:57so they go inside our lungs and through our lung blood vessels.
10:02They go actually in our blood cells, blood streams.
10:05And these particulates, they cause direct DNA damage of the healthy cells.
10:18Cancer has long been associated with lifestyle factors,
10:20such as tobacco use, diet and genetics,
10:23a quieter, more insidious driver of India's rising cancer burden
10:28is pollution both outdoor and indoor.
10:33If you are living in metro cities with bad air,
10:36your lifespan reduces by 7 to 8 years.
10:39Bad air, polluted air, polluted cities,
10:42the lifespan is reducing by around 8-9 years
10:46because people are having so many lung problems,
10:49allergy conditions, cancer, which is reducing their lifespan.
10:53So one side we say we have very good hospitals
10:56and another side we have a polluted environment
10:59where we are forced to live.
11:01So fresh air is non-negotiable.
11:04It is the need of healthy life.
11:08A 2022 study by the World Health Organization says,
11:12the air pollution is responsible for 29% of all lung cancer that's dopamine.
11:18Sometimes we use incense candles.
11:21Sometimes we use mosquito coils and various sprays for fragrance.
11:27So these all chemicals, when they circulate inside your house,
11:32they are very harmful.
11:33You are continuously exposed to those bad chemicals
11:36and especially children, especially women who are involved in the household work
11:41and in the kitchens.
11:42We should use chimneys in our kitchen.
11:45We should have a proper ventilated house.
11:47And if we can opt, we should use good quality of air purifiers.
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