Air purifiers can prevent respiratory problems: Doctors

Installation of air purifiers can be an easy way to prevent respiratory problems caused by indoor air pollution, doctors say.

According to doctors, air purifiers are becoming more reliable for people in cities because pollutants released indoors were 1,000 times more likely to reach the lungs than pollutants released outdoors.

More than 5.5 million people worldwide die prematurely every year due to household and outdoor air pollution, and India and China together account for 55 percent of these deaths, research has found.

"Air pollution has come up as one of the major health challenges of modern Indian cities. With increasing respiratory problems, it is now important to know about pollutants, and their health hazards.

"Air purifiers are emerging as a good way to stay away from major respiratory diseases caused by indoor air pollution," said Raj Kumar, head of respiratory allergy and applied immunology at Vallabhbhai Patel Chest Institute.

He said recent studies have revealed the strong link between major respiratory and lung diseases due to air pollution, which clearly indicated the need to cut down the sources of indoor air pollution.

With the World Health Organization (WHO) declaring air quality of Indian metropolitan cities as worst in the world, healthcare professionals are registering a sharp rise in respiratory problems, especially in immuno-compromised population like children, elderly and people with health issues or malnutrition.

Himanshu Garg, head of respiratory and critical care at Artemis Hospital, said: "In India, we have a long standing tradition of burning of incense sticks and dhoop that could increase the concentration of particulate matter (PM) by about 15 times more than the permitted levels."

"Smoke emitted by these releases harmful pollutants. Along with this, smoke from tobacco and cooking and dust from carpets, furniture and curtains etc. add to the indoor air pollution."

"Health problems caused can be reduced by installing air purifiers, which bring down the percentage of pollutants in the air," said Garg.