CHENNAI: For three consecutive days, a thick blanket of smog engulfed several parts of Chennai as the air quality deteriorated dramatically. It is expected that the situation will improve only after November 14 when the northeast monsoon showers are expected to resume.
Dr P Kuganantham, a former City Health Officer spoke to Express about the impact of air pollution on health and what residents can do to protect themselves. Here are some excerpts from the interview:
Government data has shown prevalence of poor air quality in the city since Monday. What kind of impact does this have on residents?
When air quality deteriorates, our body starts showing symptoms almost immediately. The direct relation is obvious. Many people experiencing, itchy skin, watery eyes or nose, irritation in throat, chest and nasal passages. It triggers existing or dormant allergies that people already have. Children, senior citizens and people with existing respiratory issues will be the first to get affected.
Do people experience other symptoms that they do not connect with air pollution right away?
There are a lot of symptoms that people don't immediately connect with air pollution. For example, air pollution worsens symptoms of asthma. If someone suffers from asthma, smog in the air can trigger asthma attacks. When people are exposed to polluted air all day, it accumulates in their systems and may cause bouts of dry coughing in night. The coughing is more vigorous particularly if there are unusual dust particles enters the respiratory tract. People with sinusitis will show stronger symptoms. There are many more health related repercussions of air pollution.
How does this impact of air pollution on health change over prolonged exposure?
What both the government and people don't realise is prolonged exposure to polluted air poses a dynamic threat of causing cancer of all parts in the body. Air pollution obviously increases the risk of lung cancer, but the risk is not restricted to that. It leads other kinds of lung and respiratory diseases too. For example, there are studies that show that prolonged exposure causes early onset of cataract, other eye diseases, renal or hepatic diseases and even mental health disorders like depression.
How can people protect themselves from being exposed to air pollution?
I will recommend that people wear cotton dresses that cover the whole body. They can wear goggles while driving. Wearing masks will help, but the simple surgical mask will be of very little help. People who are concerned, or if they are experiencing any of the symptoms we discussed, they should wear the N-92 mask which can be bought at medical shops or hospitals. People should also avoid spending a lot of time outdoors.
What do you recommend that the government should do when the quality of air detoriates?
First, government should acknowledge that one of the main reasons behind air pollution is poor city planning. The width of streets, space between buildings and concentration of population in some areas alone are all factors that play an important role in pollution levels. But at this point, the State needs to focus on collecting some important data, so that they can act on the pollution meaningfully. One, we need a survey of the composition of air: what is the proportion of Oxygen, Carbon-di-oxide and other chemicals in the air? Two, we need to use satellite images to find how high in the air dust particles are seen above Chennai. I predict that dust particles will be seen even 5 km above Chennai. Three, we need immediate regulations to control the number of vehicles on the street. Vehicles contribute significantly to poor air quality. And finally, identify all other major causes of pollution and work towards curbing that.