Exercise and Air Pollution

Should you consider air quality when you exercise? Most definitely.

Air pollution has become such a pervasive problem across the country that there are virtually no places left unaffected. Even such pristine areas as the Grand Canyon and Yosemite National Park are having their vistas marred by the specter of air pollution.

Most of us exercise near large metropolitan areas, where the air quality is even more suspect. In fact, the air quality can be worse a hundred miles away from urban centers when weather patterns carry pollutants great distances from their source.

Should you consider air quality a factor when you exercise? Most definitely. Exercise increases your exposure to air pollutants for two reasons: First, you breathe more deeply and rapidly, so you take in more air. Second, you tend to breathe through your mouth, bypassing your nose's filtering system.

Polluted air contains compounds from the combustion of fossil fuels and automobile emissions. They include oxides of sulfur and nitrogen, carbon monoxide, particulates, lead and ozone. The study of the health effects of these compounds is in its infancy, but evidence to date implicates them in acute effects on health and exercise performance.

Ozone Exposure

Our principal exposure is to ozone, a colorless gas that constitutes up to 95 percent of smog. It is produced by the action of sunlight on nitrogen oxides and hydrocarbons from automobile emissions. Concentrations are highest in the afternoons on sunny days with little wind. Weather patterns, particularly inversion conditions, trap polluted air in valleys and basins next to the mountains.

Symptoms of ozone exposure include chest tightness, eye irritation, sore throat, wheezing, coughing, shortness of breath and headache. These symptoms indicate a decline in lung function - that is, the ability of lung tissue to transport oxygen to the bloodstream. Symptoms last for several hours after exercise.

Is ozone exposure dangerous to your health?

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Table of Contents

Foreword: Billie Jean King

Comments by Barb Harris
Editor in Chief,
Shape Magazine

General Health
Nutrition
Exercise
Common Medical Problems
Dental Health
Emergency!
Infectious Disease
Sexual Health
Emotional Well-Being
Eating Disorders
Alcohol & Other Drugs
Environmental Health
Prevention