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Delhi’s Air Quality Index (AQI) has reached a point where numbers are no longer relevant. Everyone needs to make an effort to stay healthy. Stubble burning, bursting crackers during Diwali, and an excess of motor vehicles on the road are some of the major reasons. Difficulty in breathing, nausea, headache, chest ache and cold & cough are common symptoms. The pollution is especially bad for children, pregnant women, and old people.
One of the simplest ways to protect yourself from Delhi air pollution is to avoid venturing out as much as possible. Experts say that it is best to avoid working out in the morning. If you do not want to skip working out, it is best to do it at home in the evening.
Looking for convenient workout options? To keep working out during the winter when the air quality is harmful, you should workout indoors. Check out FITPASS with which you can workout at hundreds of gyms and fitness studios in your city and thousands of others across India. FITCOACH – an addition fitness service – is an A.I.-led training coach that provides dynamic workout suggestions so that you can workout anywhere you want. It adapts according to your needs and preferences.
How to Protect Yourself from Delhi Air Pollution
It is extremely harmful to anyone to be out in the open without a good pollution mask. The N95 and N99 respirators are unavoidable to protect yourself from the hazardous pollutants that would otherwise harm your lungs. Make sure that the mask you buy filters Fine Particulate Matter (PM) 2.5 among others. You can choose from reusable or use-and-throw ones as per your need. Famous companies like 3M, Dettol, and Vogmask are available online as well.
Do yourself a favor and avoid commuting on your motorbike or a bicycle. You will end up inhaling more smoke and pollutants than you would by traveling in the metro, by cab or a car. For that matter, avoid traveling in three-wheelers as well for obvious reasons. Several companies are manufacturing car air purifiers that can keep the car cabin safe from environmental pollution.
Foods packed with Vitamin C, Omega 3 fatty acids, and magnesium help the body to battle the pollutants breathed throughout the day. Eating jaggery at the end of the day is a good way to remove the pollutants from your lungs. You can substitute your sugar intake with jaggery altogether. Apart from that, you should drink plenty of water, which helps in flushing out toxins from your system.
Air purifiers are beneficial, especially for those who have breathing problems or disorders. Dirt, dust, air-freshener fumes, and cooking smoke can be a trigger for asthma patients. Air purifiers increase airflow in the room and the HEPA filters inside them, reduce the pollutants in the air. You can buy air purifiers online that remove allergens like dust and pet odors. They protect the lungs by eliminating cigarette smoke and other fumes. The best air purifiers reduce the CO2 levels, which causes most of the common symptoms like dizziness, shortness of breath, loss of mental abilities and so on.
Although there seems to be a considerable amount of debate on this topic, some believe that air purifiers are useless. Some believe that natural air purifiers – plants, can substitute electronic air purifiers. Aloe Vera, snake plant, spider plant, Areca Palm, Golden Pothos, money plant, English Ivy, and Chinese evergreen are quite effective when it comes to purifying the air. Moreover, some of these require very little sunlight, which is why they are perfect to be placed anywhere in your home. There’s a high chance that you have them in your balcony or terrace and you just need to get them in your house.
Sometimes the air inside your home can be more dangerous than the outside air. To avoid breathing it, you must ventilate your home when the air pollution level is down during the day. Otherwise, it is important to install exhausts in your kitchen and the bathroom from where the harmful air can escape.
Cardio is good for your respiratory system but not when fresh air is scarce in the environment. You should avoid working out or even going for a walk in the morning until the pollution clears out. Stay indoors and work out in a room with air purifiers. Avoid extremely heavy workout.
Drink Tulsi-Ginger or Green tea for their antioxidants that help your body cope with the pollutants.
