Health camp for traffic policemen underlines threat of lung

A majority of Delhi traffic police personnel who were screened at a health camp today were found to display symptoms of early signs of chest and lung trouble, including wheezing, shortness of breath and chronic coughing.
Of the 160 traffic police personnel who attended the camp, 25 per cent showed symptoms of allergy while another 25 per cent were diagnosed with abnormal blood pressure.
The camp was organised by a city hospital as part of the World Asthma and Allergy awareness month.
"Our men brave the worst adversities of pollution besides the highest degree of stress and long hours of duty. While we do have regular tests and mechanisms to ensure their health is monitored, initiatives like these also help to sensitise them to address chest and lung problems.

"Other than this, we also encourage our men to undergo regular yoga and meditation sessions to keep them fitter and happier. Masks are also provided to them, but these are not fully effective against gases," said Dr Muktesh Chander, Special Commissioner of Police (Traffic).
Screening the personnel for lung capacity, many symptoms were seen among them indicative of early signs of asthma, like wheezing, shortness of breath, chest tightness or pain, chronic coughing and troubled sleep due to coughing or wheezing.

"Through (the camp), we wanted to sensitise people about the problems being faced by our policemen and encourage all to contribute towards making Delhi a greener and cleaner place," said Naresh Kapoor, Director of BLK hospital.

A senior consultant of Respiratory, Allergy and Sleep disorder at the hospital, Dr Vikas Maurya, added, "Traffic Police personnel are more prone to catching allergies and infections that can lead to asthma and, in extreme conditions, may also cause Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disorder (COPD).
"Working at busy traffic signals, they get heavily exposed to the vehicular emissions. The fumes, chemicals and particles present in the emissions are detrimental to the lung functions of these individuals, prompting very serious changes to occur in the lungs.
"These changes indicate restriction of lung expansion, obstruction and narrowing of the airways... This may be due to exposure to vehicular pollution for several hours in a day for many years, causing decreased functional capacity of the lungs.