A friend of mine has just gone through and is now recovering from lung surgery – a portion of his lung where a “mass” was found was removed. The good news is that it was not cancerous – but still a serious procedure to endure. I created the following meme to send to him and thought I would share it with my readers as well.

The meme says the following:
What did the Very First Fish on the Beach say?
And I Quote: “To Breathe or Not to Breathe!”

My friend has been a smoker for all of his adult life – so lung problems of some sort should be no surprise. I, thankfully, did not fall prey to this particular habit/addiction. My main concern as for as breathing goes has been air pollution. Here are some observations on air pollution:

Air pollution is a mixture of solid particles and gases in the air and it isn’t just outside. The air inside of buildings can also be polluted and affect your health.

In 2013, the World Health Organization concluded that outdoor air pollution is carcinogenic to humans. It is nice that it is official, but we have known that air quality can damage our health since the beginning of the industrial age. And whatever the source of the particulates, biological molecules, or other harmful materials released into Earth’s atmosphere, these contaminants cause diseases and death to humans, damage to other living organisms such as animals and food crops, and destroy the natural and man made environment. A corrosive atmosphere can cause the cement of bridges to crumble and destroy delicate cavemen paintings in ancient caves.

As mentioned, poor quality air due to pollution is a significant risk factor for a number of health conditions including respiratory infections, heart disease, COPD, stroke and lung cancer. Throughout the European Union, air pollution is estimated to reduce life expectancy by almost nine months. And studies have begun to show that polluted air is also emerging as a risk factor for stroke, particularly in developing countries where pollutant levels are highest.

Long-term exposure to air pollution may cause your brain to age more quickly and and prolonged exposure has been shown to kill white matter in the brain.

Air quality is a world wide concern. Soot and air pollution may have caused China’s worst flood in 50 years, according to a recent study. In Beijing and other Chinese cities, air pollution often leaves the cities covered in a thick smog or murky air. Air pollution often spreads far from its source. Polluted air does not stay in China, for example but drifts east and can reach the coastline of the Western United States.

While China does have some decent environmental laws, they are rarely enforced. This is a major reason why corporations love to open factories in China – they do not have to include the cost of safely dealing with waste products in their prices. A boon to consumers, perhaps, but a blow to workers in other countries, like the U.S., where pollution laws are enforced. Of course, the general Chinese population will bear the greatest cost for cheap goods in rising cancer rates and other diseases due to polluted air, water and land.

Because a great amount of air pollution is caused by combustion of fossil fuels such as coal and oil, the reduction of these fuels can reduce air pollution drastically. This is another reason why a transition to renewable energy should be hastened.

Ultimately, the poisoning of our air is one of the larger mirrors reflecting man’s follies, and a challenge we need to overcome to see a clearer and healthier tomorrow. Air pollution is everyone’s problem and we each have a very good reason to implement solutions.

This post is dedicated to G.C. – have a swift recovery and a long life!

Air Pollution Related Items For Sale

[phpbay]air pollution, 7, “”, “”[/phpbay]