Our lungs are always hard at work. In just one day, a healthy person breathes nearly 25,000 times. For those with lung ailments, each and every breath can be a challenge, particularly when the air they breathe is unhealthy.
“With the forecast calling for temperatures over 90 degrees for the foreseeable future, the potential for poor air quality in the coming days and weeks is high, prompting the Clean Air Partnership to issue a reminder about the health impacts of poor air quality and the importance of staying lung healthy when outdoors,” said Susannah Fuchs, Director, Clean Air for the American Lung Association in Missouri.
The St. Louis region, like many areas in the United States, produces enough ozone during the summer months that it can be felt right away. Immediate problems – in addition to increased risk of premature death – include shortness of breath, wheezing and coughing; asthma attacks; increased risk of respiratory infections; increased susceptibility to pulmonary inflammation; and increased need for people with lung diseases, like asthma or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), to receive medical treatment or go to the hospital. Anyone who spends time outdoors when ozone levels are high may be at risk, but some are especially vulnerable to the effects of breathing ozone: children and teens; anyone 65 and older; people who work or exercise outdoors; people with existing lung diseases; and people with cardiovascular disease.
There are a number of things individuals can do to help keep their lungs in shape. Aerobic exercise helps improve lung capacity. Specific breathing exercises can also help improve your lung function if you have certain lung diseases, like COPD. But, perhaps one of the best things people can do is make sure they are breathing in clean air and avoiding exposure to pollutants that can damage the lungs.
“The Clean Air Partnership releases daily air quality forecasts to let residents know what the air quality will be during the summer months,” adds Fuchs. “Signing up to receive the air quality forecast via email at www.stlouis-cleanair.com helps to ensure that area residents know what the next day’s air quality forecast will be and if they should alter their outdoor activities to minimize exposure to polluted air.”
The Partnership also helps raise awareness about all the ways people in the St. Louis region can reduce emissions to help keep the air quality in healthy ranges. Given that auto emissions are a key contributor to poor air quality, area residents are encouraged to:
- Carpool with friends or coworkers or utilize public transit.
- Avoid vehicle idling – idling vehicles emit 20 times more pollution than a car traveling 30 mph!
- Visit www.gatewayguide.com or use MoDOT’s 511 travel information number to get real-time traffic information and use it to better plan your route to avoid traffic tie-ups construction zones.
- Combine errands into a single trip to minimize car use.
For more information and a host of additional tips to clean the air so everyone can breathe easier this summer, visit www.cleanair-stlouis.com, like the Clean Air Partnership on Facebook or follow @gatewaycleanair on Twitter.
About the American Lung Association
The American Lung Association is the leading organization working to save lives by improving lung health and preventing lung disease, through research, education and advocacy. The work of the American Lung Association is focused on four strategic imperatives: to defeat lung cancer; to improve the air we breathe; to reduce the burden of lung disease on individuals and their families; and to eliminate tobacco use and tobacco-related diseases. For more information about the American Lung Association, a holder of the Better Business Bureau Wise Giving Guide Seal, or to support the work it does, call 1-800-LUNGUSA (1-800-586-4872) or visit: Lung.org.
About the Clean Air Partnership
The Clean Air Partnership was formed in 1995, led by the American Lung Association, St. Louis Regional Chamber and Growth Association, East-West Gateway Council of Governments, Washington University and others, to increase awareness of regional air quality issues and to encourage activities to reduce air pollution emissions.
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For more information, contact:
Julie Hauser
The Hauser Group, Inc.
(314) 436-9090