Clean Air Solutions

Sources:

http://bit.ly/2hY39jg

http://bit.ly/2juux90

http://bit.ly/2hY3ank

The post Choosing the Best Air Filter: Important Things To Consider appeared first on Air Filters for Clean Air.

from Air Filters for Clean Air

Tuesday, November 21, 2017

The Toxic Danger of Silicon Valley Superfund Sites

Clean Air Solution by Camfil USA. Leader in Air Filters for Commercial and Industrial applications.

Camfil Air Filters reports on Effects of Silicon Valley Superfund Sites.

Silicon Valley is located in California’s Santa Clara County. Santa Clara is home to more Superfund sites than any other county in the United States. Superfund sites are areas that the EPA has designated as being contaminated by hazardous waste and require special attention to clean up the area. Why is Silicon Valley home to more Superfund sites than anywhere else in the country? What can be done to clean up Silicon Valley Superfund sites?

The Origin of Silicon Valley Superfund Sites

The origin of Silicon Valley’s Superfund sites can be traced to the manufacturing boom that occurred in the mid-1960s to mid-1980s. As computer chip manufacturing was being done mainly in Silicon Valley, the pollutants associated with the production of computer chips and other computer equipment found their way into the soil of the Santa Clara area.

The Superfund program was established in 1980, and typically the company responsible for the pollution foots the cleanup bill. In 1982, it was discovered that tanks constructed to hold water contaminated with volatile organic compounds were leaking into the ground. The revelation happened after higher rates of cancer were discovered throughout the Santa Clara region.

“Much of this production and pollution was done before the impacts of the toxic chemicals associated with computer chip production were fully understood, meaning that there were little to no safety regulations that guided companies in handling toxic waste,” says Charlie Seyffer, Manager of Marketing & Technical Materialsat Camfil. “Chemical byproducts were frequently just dumped into sewers or soil, where they leached into the ground and groundwater.” (1)

Not all chemical spill sites are considered to be Superfund sites. An investigation by NBC found approximately 518 chemical spill sites in total. Of these sites, at least 23 are considered highly contaminated and marked for cleanup by the EPA. Most of the Superfund sites are located where manufacturing facilities were once located or still are located.

The Effects of Silicon Valley Superfund Sites

Despite the efforts to clean up Superfund areas, the effects of Silicon Valley Superfund sites are still being felt by residents in Silicon Valley today. Thousands of people still live atop the 518 chemical spill sites, where toxic fumes can harm them.

When the chemicals that leached into the ground begin to rise up through the groundwater and soil, they lead to “vapor plumes.” These vapor plumes are toxic clouds of polluted air that emit from the ground, which is why the EPA has prohibitions on groundwater well-drilling in these areas.

“Some of the primary pollutants involved in computer chip production that are now resurfacing in vapor plumes include ethylene glycol ethers or EGEs,” explains Seyffer. “Overexposure to EGEs can cause fatal birth defects in the children of men exposed to the chemical, childhood cancers in the children of women exposed to EGEs, and general fertility issues. Significantly higher rates of miscarriage have also been correlated with exposure to EGEs.” (2)

Other toxic pollutants include trichloroethylene, or TCE, a solvent used to prepare silicon chips for etching.

“TCE is capable of seeping through cracks in the foundation of homes and schools, and short-term exposure to it can cause difficulty breathing and headaches,” continues Seyffer. “Long-term exposure to TCE is thought to cause cancer, especially lymphoma and kidney cancer.” (3)

Cleaning Up Silicon Valley Superfund Sites

Cleaning up Superfund sites in Silicon Valley and combating the associated vapor plumes has proved challenging. It is difficult to clean up Silicon Valley Superfund sites because chemical treatment of waste frequently results in more waste byproducts.

Before treatment can be done, testing for vapor intrusion must be completed to isolate areas with leakage problems. Testing is expensive and involves getting permission from neighborhoods in the suspected spill zones.

One of the most prominent ways of treating chemically-polluted ground is the process of superheating. Toxic waste is removed from a Superfund site and then brought to a plant where it is put into a massive furnace and melted down to separate the toxic chemicals using air filters. Superheating can create toxic dioxins, which are then released into the air and are part of the EPA’s “dirty dozen” chemicals.

Another method frequently employed to clean up Superfund sites is the creation of soil vapor extraction wells. These are wells intended to extract the chemicals and fumes out of the ground, where they are then sent to an air stripping facility and treated by a process known as carbon adsorption. The success of this method is spotty, as frequently areas that have been treated see the little measurable reduction in soil or water toxicity.

“New tactics like bioremediation, the use of microbes that digest the chemicals in the ground seem to be effective in treating Superfund sites,” says Seyffer. “The bacteria are fed things like vegetable oil or molasses to encourage them to grow until they are able to break down toxic components into harmless constituent parts. Bioremediation has successfully reduced the toxicity level of the groundwater in at least two different Superfund sites throughout Santa Clara County.” (4)

Cleaning up Superfund sites is prohibitively expensive. The EPA estimates that for every site cleaned up, taxpayers will shell out around 1.2 billion dollars for every ten years of treatment. The EPA has invested around $48 million, as of 2015, to clean up South Bay sites alone, though they have managed to recover around $31 million from the companies responsible for the spills.

The Importance of Preventing Silicon Valley Superfund Sites

While developing new treatments like bioremediation is important, the best treatment is prevention. Preventing Silicon Valley Superfund sites from developing, as well as preventing the development of Superfund sites elsewhere, should be a high priority. Manufacturing plants currently in Silicon Valley are being monitored for pollution, and that monitoring should continue along with the use of strict regulations and the employment of pollution-reducing technologies.

Contact Camfil immediately if you live in an area affected by the toxic plumes released by Superfund sites. Camfil can advise you on the best tactics to protect yourself from the airborne toxins released by Silicon Valley Superfund sites, and provide you with air filters and purifiers.

SOURCES

http://bit.ly/2zpKJTR

http://bit.ly/2mOnKvF

http://bit.ly/2zpKKqT

http://bit.ly/2mPI93n

The post The Toxic Danger of Silicon Valley Superfund Sites appeared first on Air Filters for Clean Air.

from Air Filters for Clean Air

Wednesday, November 15, 2017

The Stealth Threat of Open Fire Air Pollution

Clean Air Solution by Camfil USA. Leader in Air Filters for Commercial and Industrial applications.

Every year around four million people who live in developing countries die due to illnesses caused by pollutants, many of which emanate from open fire cooking and fill up their homes whenever they cook a meal. Open fire air pollution includes particulate pollutants that can cause diseases like lung cancer and pneumonia. Who are the people most impacted by pollutants from open fire cooking, and what can be done to protect their health?

Health Impacts of Open Fire Air Pollution

Around half of the world’s population – over three billion people – still, use pollution heavy traditional stoves to prepare dinner each day. The health impacts of open fire air pollution are well known, and household air pollution is the world’s fourth largest risk to people’s health, especially in developing countries.

“Traditional, open fire cooking methods and implements produce high levels of household air pollutants. Small soot particles are generated from cooking which can penetrate into the lungs, and in poorly ventilated homes built up indoor smoke can be one hundred times higher than recommended levels,” says Kevin Wood, Camfil USA Vice President Sales & Marketing. “These particles can cause health problems like pneumonia, stroke, ischemic heart disorder, chronic obstructive pulmonary disorder (COPD), and lung cancer.” (1)

Exposure to household air pollution will nearly double a child’s chance of childhood pneumonia. Over half of pneumonia-related deaths amongst all children under five years old are due to particulates that come from indoor air pollutants from cooking.

Approximately one-quarter of all deaths from stroke (around 1.4 million deaths a year, half of which are women) can be attributed to the continual exposure to air pollution from home cooking. Further, around 17% of lung cancer deaths a year in adults are due to carcinogens from air pollutants from cooking with solid fuels like wood or charcoal.

Who Is Affected by Open Fire Air Pollution?

When it comes to who is affected by open fire air pollution, China and India have the highest death rates from air pollution in the home. Approximately 45 percent of China’s population still uses open fires to cook, which creates more than one million deaths per year.

In India, 63% percent of the populace depends on solid fuel sources, which is responsible for an additional one million yearly deaths. In Uganda, 97 percent of individuals depend on solid fuel for cooking, and around 13,000 people die from air pollution-related ailments every year.

Children and women are at particular risk due to the fact that they spend up to five hours a day gathering fuel for cooking and spend much more time around the fire. The sheer amount of time spent on the fire can prompt lung and coronary illness, stroke, pneumonia, and cancer as indicated by the World Health Organization.

“The World Health Organization estimates that 35 percent of deaths from chronic respiratory illnesses and 21 percent of lower respiratory infection deaths are from indoor air contamination via pollutants from solid fuel,” explains Wood. “In China, where coal is the primary fuel, open fire air pollution is the second highest cause of lung disease, after smoking. Women who cook inside near open flames additionally have thicker carotid artery blockage and more blood vessel plaque development than their counterparts who utilize oil or gas stoves. Both are indications of coronary disease.” (2)

Families in Guatemala often utilize indoor flames for cooking, as well as to keep warm. Stillbirths and low-weight children are connected to indoor air pollution from cooking with solid fuels. In Guatemala, babies are an average of 85 grams heavier when born if their moms utilize electric or gas stoves rather than traditional stoves.

Possible Solutions to Open Fire Air Pollution?

The Global Alliance for Clean Cookstoves (GACR) is investigating possible solutions to open fire air pollution and pursuing technological methods of bringing clean stoves to developing areas of the world. It’s also organizing financial resources to create quality-control measures. The association itself doesn’t offer clean cookstoves but it works with producers to provide a variety of clean cookstoves to families who need them. (3)

The Alliance wants to create a clean stove program that is self-sustaining, as opposed to similar programs in the past which gave away or sponsored new stoves to a rather limited amount of success. The Alliance highlights the environmental benefits of the program as well as the health benefits, open-fire stoves are responsible for almost as much carbon residue as diesel vehicles and other trucks around the world.

Cleaner cookstoves will also mean changing the way individuals in developing countries cook their meals. Traditional ways of cooking will have to go by the wayside in favor of less pollutant heavy methods.

“Certainly, persuading poor families to change traditional cooking practices is a challenge. Designing an affordable yet hardy stove that won’t pollute is also tough,” says Camfil’s Wood. “For instance, rocket stoves have insulated ignition chambers which allow for a complete burning of firewood. They save money on fuel costs, yet they don’t do a great job at eliminating soot and smoke. More recent designs have integrated fans which produce significantly less smoke, however, they are rather expensive.” (4)

Despite the fact that there are no guidelines that determine what a “clean” cookstove is, the Association is pursuing the creation of cheap stoves that cook with alternative fuel sources including ethanol gel, fuel pellets, and petroleum gas barrels. Solar power is another attractive choice for clean cooking.

Open fire air pollution kills millions of people every year through a variety of respiratory illnesses and impacts poor and developing nations disproportionately. Organizations like GACR are taking action to stop this preventable tragedy, and 2013 saw the distribution of 11.7 million stoves to seven different nations by the Alliance’s partners. GACR hopes to substantially reduce open fire air pollution and have 100 million homes embracing clean cooking by 2020.

If you want to learn more about open fire air pollution, including how to protect yourself from it, visit Camfil USA Air Filtration Company today.

Lynne Laake

Camfil USA Air Filters

T: 888.599.6620,

E: Lynne.Laake@camfil.com

Sources:

http://bit.ly/2yIKjDF

http://bit.ly/2AQrAHF

http://bit.ly/2yIKzlZ

http://bit.ly/2APnFLn

The post The Stealth Threat of Open Fire Air Pollution appeared first on Air Filters for Clean Air.

from Air Filters for Clean Air

Thursday, November 9, 2017

How to Deal With Pollution Taxes and the Economy

Clean Air Solution by Camfil USA. Leader in Air Filters for Commercial and Industrial applications.

Pollution taxes and the economy are related in a variety of complex ways. While many people think that government regulation of energy standards is the only way to improve the environment and cut down on air pollution, but there might be more effective policies that go overlooked. Taxing goods and services responsible for pollution has the potential to reduce pollution without harming lower-income families.

Economists largely agree on the proposed solution and argue that taxes which target sources of pollution are the least costly way to improve the quality of the air and environment.

This system would work by taxing the electricity generated by power plants that pollute, instead of building energy codes and creating efficiency standards for appliances. Similarly, taxing gasoline to reduce auto missions would take the place of creating fuel economy standards for vehicles.

A common argument against pollution taxes for pollution is that they are unfair since poor families would essentially spend a larger portion of their income on things like gas for their cars and heat for their houses. They would pay a larger share of their income due to pollution taxes. However, it could be argued that pollution taxes are actually fairer than the current system is.

Fairness of Pollution Taxes

“When it comes to the fairness of pollution taxes, side-by-side comparisons of the economic impact on poor households show that efficiency standards end up costing poor households more money than a pollution tax or an energy tax does in the long run,” says Kevin Wood, Camfil USA Vice President Sales & Marketing. “Efficiency standards also cost richer household less. This happens because to meet an average mile per gallon target, carmakers raise the prices they charge on gas-guzzling cars relative to their more fuel-efficient cars. This means that those standards already act as sort of a tax on inefficient vehicles, instead of the tax on gasoline that people could be paying.” (1)

By contrast, a gasoline tax that costs around $.30 per gallon would be better for the poor and underprivileged than a tax on inefficient vehicles would be if the same amount of revenue was raised.

Richer families buy more gasoline and own more vehicles, so they would pay more either way. However, even while the richest families tend to own three times as many cars as the poorest families, they use around four times as much gas. This translates into the fact that wealthy families will end up paying less for a car tax than the gas tax, relative to their poor counterparts.

This becomes worse when you consider that Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) standards were changed in 2011 to be even more costly for lower-income people. The new standards try to adjust for each car’s footprint, but that means that automakers can now sell larger cars to meet less stringent mile per gallon standards than sellers of smaller vehicles, due to the fact that footprint is measured by the area between all four tires.

Both pollution taxes and the economy as a whole currently favor the rich. While both policies end up imposing unequal burdens on the poor when compared to the rich, the methods currently in use end up costing lower income families more and do less to benefit the environment.

Effectiveness of Pollution Taxes

Few studies have been done on the effectiveness of pollution taxes, but the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) has analyzed policies dubbed cap and trade programs which would set a price on CO2 emissions. These analyses suggest that a similar carbon tax that was applied to the majority of CO2 emissions, or to the carbon content of most of the fossil fuel used in the U.S., which has the potential to generate “a substantial amount of revenue.”

“In 2011, the CBO estimated that a specific cap and trade program which initially set a price of $20 in 2012 to emit one ton of CO2, and to increase that price by 5% for each year afterwards, would raise around $1.2 trillion in revenue during its first decade of operation,” says Camfil’s Kevin Wood. (2)

However, other models have suggested that pollution taxes are the inefficient way is to raise revenue.

“This is speculated to because the economic cost of raising a dollar from green taxes is usually higher than that of raising a dollar by ordinary income tax measures,” says Wood. “Pollution taxes usually have much narrower applications than income taxes, and usually only focus on certain commodities or emissions from certain industries.” (3)

For this reason, they frequently imply larger “distortions” in markets for consumer goods, labor, and capital. This means that swapping out a green tax for income taxes would augment the already occurring distortions of the tax system and create an economic cost for this form of taxes.

Relationship Between Pollution Taxes and the Economy

The relationship between pollution taxes and the economy is complex and varied. The effects of a carbon tax on the economy would depend largely on how the revenues gained from the taxes were utilized. There are various options that exist, including decreasing existing marginal tax rates, offsetting the cost that a carbon tax would impose on specific groups of people, or reducing budget deficits.

“There is yet another factor which influences the fairness of economic and environmental policy like these,” says Camfil’s Wood. “No matter which policy you use, taxes or standards, it can be skewed in favor of either rich or poor family just by changing who will get the collected revenues.” (1)

For instance, if the revenues gained from pollution taxes were used to subsidize the creation of vacation houses or to reduce capital gains tax rates that would be unfair to poor Americans. On the other hand, early childhood education programs would favor poor families.

More research on the relationship between pollution taxes and the economy will have to be done to find the optimal solution, but pollution taxes have the potential to play an important role in fighting air pollution. There must be some sort of compromise to be found between those two extremes, that benefits the environment and poor Americans

The Camfil Group is a world leader in the development and production of air filters and clean air solutions. With more than 50 years of experience in the air filtration industry, Camfil designs and manufactures innovative and efficient solutions to fit any need. From replacement filters that deliver the lowest total cost of ownership to highly efficient, energy-saving complete air filtration systems, Camfil products provide cleaner air, healthier environments, and lower operating costs.

Lynne Laake

Camfil USA Air Filters

T: 888.599.6620,

E: Lynne.Laake@camfil.com

Sources:

http://fxn.ws/2Avg8B4

http://bit.ly/2ykVQZx

http://bit.ly/2AvNbVP

The post How to Deal With Pollution Taxes and the Economy appeared first on Air Filters for Clean Air.

from Air Filters for Clean Air

Monday, November 6, 2017

How Understanding the Air Quality Index Could Save Your Life

Clean Air Solution by Camfil USA. Leader in Air Filters for Commercial and Industrial applications.

Breathing polluted air for only a few hours a day can have major impacts on your health.

The Air Quality Index (AQI) is a system created by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to help people understand the effects their local air quality will have on their health. Understanding the Air Quality Index is important because it will let you know how dangerous the air around you is to breathe and what kinds of precautions you should be taking to preserve your health.

How Air Quality is Determined

The Air Quality Index measures amounts of various pollutants such as ozone, carbon monoxide, sulfur dioxide, and particulate pollution in the environmental air. In terms of how air quality is determined, hourly measurements are taken of each of the various kinds of pollutants and then converted into a number of that starts at zero and goes upward using a scale or standard index.

“This index goes from 0 to 500, and the lower the number on the scale the better the air quality is. An AQI of 0 to 50 indicates good air quality, with a minimal possibility of harming an individual’s health and impacting the environment,” explains Kevin Wood, Camfil USA Vice President Sales & Marketing “However, an AQI of 300 to 500 would represent air quality with serious potential to harm people’s health and damage the environment.” (1)

The standard for acceptable air quality is 100, which corresponds to the type approved air quality standards that are safe for the public. AQI levels which are below 100 are highly desirable and satisfactory while values beyond 100 are seen as hazardous to human well-being.

During time periods with elevated AQI, public health institutions advise that sensitive groups like children and those who have respiratory problems stay indoors and limit activity, or use air pollution masks.

Dangers of Exposure to Poor Quality Air

It’s important to pay attention to air quality ratings because exposure to poor air quality can cause a variety of health problems including cardiovascular disease and cancer. The World Health Organization (WHO) warns that pollutants like nitrous oxide and sulfur dioxide can cause eye irritation, damage to the respiratory system, inflamed airways, and other health problems.

Long-term exposure to poor air quality can reduce overall lung function, and exacerbate issues for those with previously existing cardiovascular or lung diseases. Air pollution is thought to be responsible for the deaths of more than two million people every year.

Four major kinds of air pollutants include particulate pollution, carbon monoxide, ozone, and sulfur dioxide. Ozone is beneficial when present in the Earth’s upper atmosphere, but at ground level, it can cause damage to people’s respiratory systems. Carbon monoxide is a colorless and odorless gas which often is formed when carbon-based fuels do not burn completely, and breathing it reduces the amount of oxygen that reaches the body’s tissues and organs.

Sulfur dioxide is also colorless and is produced when fuels that contain sulfur, such as oil and coal are burned. Finally, particulate pollution is a mixture of liquid and solid droplets which often come from come busting the fuels and other sources, and it can cause or exacerbate heart and lung disease.

“To protect yourself from these pollutants, the EPA says you should avoid prolonged and heavy exertion on days with poor air quality ratings,” says Wood at Camfil. “Prolonged exertion is any activity performed outdoors for several hours which might cause you to breathe slightly faster than you would normally. Heavy exertion means any intense outdoor activities that would cause you to breathe heavily, regardless of the active length. Avoiding these types of exertion will reduce your intake of unhealthy poor quality air.” (2)

Understanding the Air Quality Index Through its Categories

Understanding the Air Quality Index through its categories is not complicated, and doing so may save your life. The EPA breaks up the AQI into six different sections. (3)

The first section is the values 0 to 50 on the AQI, represents good air quality, and is represented by the color green. Air in this category represents little to no risk for the health of the population.

Section two of the AQI refers to the values 51 to 100, represents acceptable air quality, and is represented by the color yellow. If air quality is in this category, it means that the air is generally safe, however, those who are unusually sensitive to air pollution should exercise caution.

Section three of the AQI contains the values 101 to 150, represents air that is unhealthy for sensitive groups, and is colored orange. Air in this category can harm members of sensitive groups, but the general public is not likely to be impacted by it.

The fourth section of the AQI runs from 151 to 200 and represents air that is unhealthy. It is denoted by the color red. The air of this quality can begin to affect the health of everyone who reads it, and those who are sensitive to respiratory health problems can experience more serious and dangerous health effects.

Section five of the AQI contains values 201 to 300, represents very unhealthy air, and is denoted by the color purple. At this level of air quality, everyone may experience serious health impacts.

Section six of the AQI contains all values above 300 and represents extremely unhealthy or hazardous air quality. It is represented by the color maroon. Air quality at this level is considered to be emergency conditions, and the entire population is likely to be impacted by it.

“It’s important to pay attention to the air quality rating where you live because it can have a measurable impact on your health and the health of your family,” says Wood at Camfil. “Understanding the air quality index and knowing that air quality is poor on a certain day will help you take measures to protect yourself, like limiting outdoor activity or ensuring your air filters are functioning. You can find out what the air quality rating in your area is by using the AirNow.Gov website.” (4) Additionally, it may be beneficial to run the fan on your HVAC system so the air in your building is being constantly filtered to remove contaminants of concern.

Get help understanding the Air Quality Index and learn how you can protect yourself and your family from poor air quality by visiting Camfil today. Camfil has built its reputation on providing quality on a budget. Camfil operates under the guiding principle that clean air is the right of all humans no matter where they live.

Media Contacts:

Lynne Laake

Camfil USA Air Filters

T: 888.599.6620,

E:Lynne.Laake@camfil.com

Sources:

http://bit.ly/2lXvHOH

http://bit.ly/2yBrxlC

http://bit.ly/2u4PX0q

http://bit.ly/2yARMbK

The post How Understanding the Air Quality Index Could Save Your Life appeared first on Air Filters for Clean Air.

from Air Filters for Clean Air

Thursday, November 2, 2017

How to Deal With the Impacts of Air Pollution on Exercise

Clean Air Solution by Camfil USA. Leader in Air Filters for Commercial and Industrial applications.

Exercise is a key ingredient of a healthy lifestyle, but research has shown that air pollution can make exercising a health risk and impact your performance. Individuals who have pre-existing conditions such as asthma, or other heart or lung ailments, are especially at risk of harm if exercising while in polluted conditions. What are the impacts of air pollution on exercise? How can you protect yourself from the effects that air pollution will have on your health and performance while exercising?

Health Concerns from Exercising in Polluted Air

Outdoor air pollution comes from many sources including traffic from motor vehicles, burning wood or other materials, pollen from trees and flowers, agricultural or construction operations, and other sources. Exposure to these pollutants can cause health problems even when a person is not exercising, however, when someone is exercising the potential for health problems amplify. Health concerns from exercising in polluted air include the possibility of developing both upper and lower airway problems.

“When exercising, you’re typically breathing harder and inhaling more air deeper into your lungs. You’re also more likely to breathe through your mouth while exercising, which causes the air you breathe to evade your nasal passages which usually filters out many airborne particles,” says Kevin Wood, Camfil USA Vice President Sales & Marketing. “These airborne particles then have a greater chance to penetrate into your lungs and cause things like headaches, increased risk of asthma, increased risk of heart attacks or stroke, damage to the lungs themselves, or even death.” (1)

Research into the damage the air pollution caused in athletes suggests that constant inhalation of dangerous air pollutants can lead to the development of asthma. Extended pollution exposure can also cause airway hyper-responsiveness, a condition associated with both chronic obstructive pulmonary disease as well as asthma.

Studies imply that individuals who live in areas with high levels of particulate pollution are more likely to die from heart attacks, which is a concern for athletes who train outdoors and take in large amounts of particulate pollutants.

Effects of Air Pollution on Exercise Performance

Research into the effects of air pollution on exercise performance has correlated air pollution with reduced athletic performance.

“One of the pollutants in smog is carbon monoxide, which has a measurable degrading effect on a person’s ability to transport oxygen throughout their body, since it impacts red blood cells,” says Camfil’s Wood. “Carbon monoxide enters into the blood through the lungs and occupies the sites where oxygen-carrying red blood cells usually bond. As the amount of carbon monoxide in the blood increases, athletic performance will drop linearly in correlation, since the blood is transporting less oxygen.” (2)

Particularly high levels of carbon monoxide, such as is found in areas with heavy smog problems like Beijing or Los Angeles, can degrade a person’s muscular coordination. Mental functioning can also be negatively affected, due to the fact that up to 5% of the red blood cells in a person’s body can be weighed down by carbon monoxide.

Other pollutants such as hydrocarbons and ozone can irritate a person’s throat, nose, lungs, and air passages. This likewise reduces the amount of oxygen in the body and reduces athletic performance.

Research into exposure to ozone, carbon monoxide, and sulfur oxides has linked the substances to inhibited athletic performance. A study which examined race times among high school students in the Los Angeles area found that exposure to high levels of oxidants was positively correlated with slower race times.

Protecting Yourself from the Impacts of Air Pollution on Exercise

The benefits of exercise are well documented, and you should not give up exercise unless you absolutely necessary. However, protecting yourself from the impacts of air pollution on exercise is important. There are a number of steps you can take to reduce your exposure to air pollutants while exercising, training, or competing, thus protecting your health.

“It’s important to monitor levels of air pollution. You should pay attention to local warnings about poor air quality, especially when the weather is hot. Frequently athletes believe that shortness of breath is due to heat exposure, but it is often caused by high pollution levels,” explains Camfil’s Wood. “Exercise should be done in either the early morning or late evening. This is when air pollution levels, especially ozone levels, are at their lowest. Likewise, runners should avoid the most heavily trafficked roads, where levels of combustion pollutants are highest.” (3)

Training should be done indoors if possible, and in a room with a high-efficiency air purifier.

The benefits of exercise are clear, but it is important not to let air pollution turn exercising into a health hazard instead of a health benefit.

If you want to learn more about how to protect yourself from the impacts of air pollution on exercise, or purchase http://bit.ly/1YK23ps

and purifiers, contact Camfil today.

Lynne Laake

Camfil USA Air Filters

T: 888.599.6620,

E: Lynne.Laake@camfil.com