If you’ve been outside on a smoggy day, you’ve probably noticed that your body reacts poorly to bad air quality. Maybe you coughed, or got a headache. But what actually happens to your body when you breathe in polluted air?
Megan Hall: Welcome to Possibly, where we take on huge problems like the future of our planet and break them down into small questions with unexpected answers. I’m Megan Hall.
If you’ve been outside on a smoggy day, you’ve probably noticed that your body reacts poorly to bad air quality. Maybe you start coughing, or your head starts hurting. But what’s actually happening to your body as you breathe in that polluted air?
We had Andrea Li and Rachel Chae from our Possibly Team look into this.
Andrea Li: Hi!
Rachel Chae: Hey Megan!
Megan Hall: Before we talk about how air pollution affects our bodies, let’s take a step back. What do we really mean by polluted air?
Andrea Li: So there are six main types of air pollution which can be harmful to public health and the environment. Some you’re probably heard of, like lead and carbon monoxide.
Rachel Chae: But today we’re going to talk about a sort of catch-all air pollutant on the list: particulate matter.
Andrea Li: As the name sort of implies, particulate matter, is not a single type of chemical, but rather pollution made up of a whole host of things floating in the air as tiny particles.
Rachel Chae: If your throat has ever felt scratchy when there’s a wildfire nearby, you’ve probably inhaled these particles. But these particles can also come from lots of other sources. They’re…
Allan Just: released from exhaust from traffic… Emissions from large industrial sources, like coal fire power plants… It’s a mixture that comes from many different sources. 2:51
Rachel Chae: That’s Professor Allan Just. He’s an associate professor of epidemiology and Environment and Society at Brown University.
Megan Hall: Got it. So how does this type of air pollution affect us?
Andrea Li: Even though this air pollution is made up of tiny particles, it actually has a big impact on our health. Because the particles are so tiny, they…
Allan Just: get deep, deep into the lungs and get transmitted into the bloodstream and impact lots of different health endpoints in the human body. It has a long established negative impact on human health.
Andrea Li: For instance, it can worsen conditions like asthma.
Rachel Chae: Yup. It can also cause strokes and heart attacks. For example, high levels of air pollution in Mexico City have been linked to deaths from strokes. But did you know that air pollution can also alter how our brains function?
Allan Just: Our ability to perform work with our brain is negatively affected both by long term exposure to air pollution and even short term.
Rachel Chae: A recent study found that chess players performed better when they were breathing cleaner air.
Andrea Li: Another study found that people did better on standardized tests when they breathed in clean air instead of air with particulate matter.
Megan Hall: Ok. Let me get this straight. When we breathe in air pollutants, they can go into our bloodstream. Once they’re in our blood, they can hurt our heart health and even our brains.
Andrea Li: That’s right.
Megan Hall: Wow. What can we do to protect ourselves?
Rachel Chae: According to Just:
Allan Just: It’s hard for individuals to do as much about emissions, but they can try to avoid adding additional air pollution in their homes, particularly when there’s poor air quality outside.
Andrea Li: For instance, burning candles inside can create particulate matter, although the research is still out about how much of an impact they might have on your health. HEPA air filters are also another way to improve indoor air quality.
Rachel Chae: We can also check weather apps that show the air quality index in our area to stay informed.
Andrea Li: And mask up or stay indoors if those levels are unhealthy. Ultimately, though, it’s up to the government to regulate air pollution from large sources like the coal industry or even wildfires.
Rachel Chae: The good news is— that it’s very doable to reduce particulate matter. Laws like the Clean Air Act in the US have dramatically improved air quality.
Andrea Li: Plus, cities that are reducing fossil fuel use and opting for clean energy are already seeing big improvements.
Megan Hall: Got it! Thanks, Andrea and Rachel!
That’s it for today. You can find more information, or ask a question about the way your choices affect our planet, at askpossibly.org. You can also subscribe to Possibly wherever you get your podcasts or follow us on Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, X, or Bluesky at “askpossibly”
Possibly is a co-production of Brown University’s Institute for Environment and Society, Brown’s Climate Solutions Initiative, and the Public’s Radio.
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