Effects of pollution on respiratory health

Think air pollution causes problems? What basic prerequisite do human beings need to survive? Air well, not only homo sapiens, but each and every land creature survives on air. All life needs clean air to survive, and there is no substitute for air. A person can go hours without food and water, but without air life ends in a few minutes. The importance of air cannot be overstated. Air pollution is a change in the physical, chemical and biological characteristics of air that causes adverse effects on humans and other organisms. The ultimate result is a change in the natural environment and/or ecosystem. The substances that are responsible for causing air pollution are called air pollutants. These can be either natural (e.g. wildfires) or synthetic (man-made); they may be in the form of gas, liquid or solid.

The quality of the Air we breathe affects the quality of our health. Air quality has an impact on the health of our lungs and the entire respiratory system. In addition to oxygen, the air contains other substances such as pollutants, which can be harmful to health. The inhalation of those pollutants may have harmful effects on the lungs and other organs of the body. The respiratory system is particularly sensitive to air pollutants because it is made up of a mucous membrane covering its internal surface. The lungs are designed to absorb large amounts of air (400 million litres on average over a lifetime) in close contact with the bloodstream and facilitate the transport of oxygen.

The cells of the lung tissue can be damaged by air pollutants such as ozone, metals and free radicals. Ozone can cause damage to the alveoli - air sac in the lungs where exchange of oxygen and carbon dioxide is produced. More specifically, the airway tissues, which contain a large number of bio activation enzymes, can transform organic pollutants into reactive metabolites, which can cause lung injuries, neurobehavioral disorders, and cancers possibly including breast cancer.

Effects of air pollution on human cardiovascular system

Air pollutants, once inhaled, are absorbed by the blood and transported to the heart. A wide range of chemical and biological substances can directly affect the cardiovascular system and lead to structural damages, such as necrosis degenerative and inflammatory reactions. Some pollutants may also affect contractility of the heart. If these functional changes are sufficiently serious, they can cause fatal arrhythmias. The changes in the organic systems may also have effects on the endocrine system. Some cytokines released by other inflamed organs (due to air pollutants) may also produce negative effects on the cardio-vascular, including the reduction of the mechanical performance and metabolic efficiency of the heart and blood vessels.