The Scary Ways Air Pollution Can Mess with Your Health

A major problem, since inhaling ozone, even briefly, is “like getting a sunburn on your lungs—and, over time, the resulting inflammation can scar lung tissue, narrow airways, and worsen asthma,” says Norman Edelman, M.D., a senior scientific advisor for the ALA.

Respiratory difficulties are just one factor; research shows mucked-up air can mess with our hearts, immune systems, and cognitive prowess. One study found that women who lived in high-pollution areas for more than a decade had prematurely aged brains, a precursor to dementia and Alzheimer’s.

Across our country, 50 percent of people now live in areas where levels of two major pollutants make the simple act of breathing a health hazard. 

The reality is, most of us suck in toxins day in and day out—often without even knowing it. And most women with busy lives don’t have the option to hide inside (which, frankly, isn’t always much safer). The best way to breathe easier is to know where specific threats stem from so you can minimize your exposure.

RELATED: 7 Ways Climate Change Is Seriously Going to Eff with Your Future Health

A Perfect Storm
In part, we have ourselves to blame. America has just five percent of the world’s total population but 30 percent of its automobiles—cars that spew out microscopic metals like lead, and noxious gases such as nitrogen oxides and carbon monoxide. (Buses and trains emit the same filth, but they use less energy per person so are overall healthier transit options.)

Then there’s our collective appetite for meat: The average American chows down 271 pounds of beef, poultry, and pork per year. Much of that livestock eats grains sprayed with pesticides that can drift miles to poison our nervous systems. Plus, their flatulence is high in methane, a gas 25 times more toxic than carbon monoxide, and the animals’ waste contains ammonia, which can mix with factory exhaust to form particulate matter.

Both cars and cows also flood the air with heat-trapping gases that contribute to climate change—which is terrible for the environment and our health. Hotter, drier days increase the risk for wildfires, which, in turn, funnel smoke and ash into the air to ramp up the production of ozone, says Janice Nolen, assistant vice president of national policy for the ALA. Sounds pretty remote for city dwellers, but after wildfires engulfed Quebec in 2002, air-quality scientists in Baltimore, 700 miles away, measured a 30-fold increase in particulate matter.

Add to this simmering cocktail new junkers like BPA. The endocrine-disrupting chemical has recently been ID’d in floating form, possibly going airborne when plastics are burned.

Photograph by MARK RALSTON/Getty

Worse for Air
It’s all a lot to breathe in—and it can be hell on our bodies and minds. Smog, which may speed buildup of plaque in arteries, has been linked to heart attacks and strokes. It’s also now tied to multiple types of cancer, including breast and ovarian, since tiny toxic particles can penetrate the lungs and skin, enter the bloodstream, and disperse carcinogenic compounds throughout the body.

Cars flood the air with heat-trapping gases that contribute to climate change—which is terrible for the environment and our health. 

Women who are pregnant or trying to conceive are particularly affected by pollution. Exposure to high levels can lead to infertility, premature births, and diabetes during pregnancy and after (for mom and baby). One study found that expectant mothers who lived in highly polluted areas were up to two times as likely to have kids with autism.

Perhaps the deadliest fallout of all: Last year, scientists found that suicide rates spike 20 percent after three straight days of poor air quality. Pollutants may mess with the way the body metabolizes mood-regulating chemicals like serotonin. “The hypothesis is that if someone has an underlying psychiatric condition or a genetic predisposition to depression, breathing in bad air could send them over the edge,” explains study author Amanda V. Bakian, Ph.D., a research professor of psychiatry at the University of Utah School of Medicine.

RELATED: Eating Fast Food Could Expose You to This Dangerous Chemical

Deep Breaths
Finally, some good news: You can protect yourself by taking relatively simple steps. First, keep on top of overall air pollution in your town using the ALA’s stateoftheair.org. Then do a daily check of the air quality index (AQI)—a zero-to-500-point scale from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)—on airnow.gov. If the AQI near you reads above 150 (a level deemed unhealthy for most people), limit your time outdoors. If you can’t, consider donning a protective mask.

Counterintuitively, breaking a sweat, even outside, can help. Working out boosts blood flow to the heart, lungs, and brain—benefits that may outweigh the pitfalls of a smoggy jog, says Julian Marshall, Ph.D., a professor of environmental engineering at the University of Washington. (Still, set out before 10 a.m., when ozone levels are more muted, and stay off main drags; concentrations of some pollutants are lower on side streets.)

Last year, scientists found that suicide rates spike 20 percent after three straight days of poor air quality. 

Salvation may also sit on your plate. Antioxidants like vitamins C and E can neutralize free radicals, tiny compounds that help pollutants do their dirty work in the body. Aim to get 250 milligrams of C a day (the amount in two cups of spinach plus a large orange and a cup of strawberries) and 50 IU of vitamin E (a handful of sunflower seeds, 1 tablespoon of wheat germ oil, and two ounces of almonds). Omega-3 fatty acids have also been linked to protecting the heart from air pollution. Nosh three grams a day, about the amount in six ounces of fatty fish like salmon or mackerel.

Meanwhile, start supporting—via donations, letters, or your vote—clean-air groups like the ALA, which is lobbying Washington to lower the bar on allowable ozone emissions from cars. The EPA’s Clean Power Plan, currently stayed in the Supreme Court, would set new limits on carbon pollution from power plants.

War Paint
Pollution can do more than gunk up your insides. It can shellac your skin, causing inflammation, hyperpigmentation, and dehydration, which adds years to your face. Make these products your first line of defense.

Kiehl’s Cilantro Orange Extract Pollutant Defending Masque ($32, kiehls.com)
Cilantro seed oil repairs skin-barrier damage caused by pollution; orange extract curbs oxidative stress. Slather it on overnight; rinse off in the a.m.

Photograph courtesy of Kiehl’s

Decleor Anti-Pollution Hydrating Gel-Gream ($67, decleorusa.com)
A combo of moringa and centella plant extracts can quell pollution-caused inflammation. Apply a dime-size dollop after cleansing in the evening.

Photograph courtesy of Decleor

Elizabeth Arden Prevage Citysmart SPF 50 Hydrating Shield ($68, elizabetharden.com)
This tinted sunscreen contains a polymer-based guard to prevent particulate matter from wrecking your skin. Smooth on before makeup each morning.

Photograph courtesy of Elizabeth Arden

Dr. Andrew Weil for Origins Mega-Defense Barrier-Boosting Essence Oil ($51, origins.com)
Omega fatty acids and evening primrose and camellia oils fortify and protect your face. Rub on three to five drops of the sheer oil day and night.

Photograph courtesy of Origins

For plants that vacuum up toxins and more, pick up the June 2016 issue of Women’s Health, on newsstands now.