Smog And Your Lungs
Every November the sky over Lahore turns grey, then orange, then a strange yellow that hangs over the canal road for ten weeks. We call it smog, but the proper name is particulate matter pollution. The air carries milli…
There is more than one way to understand this. If you have only been taught one, you have been taught less than you deserve.
There is more than one way to understand this. If you have only been taught one, you have been taught less than you deserve.
Every November the sky over Lahore turns grey, then orange, then a strange yellow that hangs over the canal road for ten weeks. We call it smog, but the proper name is particulate matter pollution. The air carries millions of tiny pieces, some so small they slip past your nose hairs and go straight into your lungs, then into your blood. The Air Quality Index, or AQI, measures it. A healthy city sits below 50. Lahore in December often hits 400 or higher, which is the level Beijing was at fifteen years ago, before they spent two decades fixing it. Karachi is bad in a different way, dust and traffic. Peshawar and Faisalabad are not far behind. This is not your imagination. This is the worst air in the world right now, and you are breathing it.
Where does the smog come from. Three big sources, and we should be honest about all three. First, vehicles. Old buses, rickshaws, and trucks running on low quality diesel pour out black smoke. Second, brick kilns and factories around the city, many still burning rubber, plastic, and old tires. Third, crop residue burning. Farmers in Punjab burn the leftover stalks after rice harvest in October because they need to plant wheat in two weeks and there is no money for the machines that cut and bury the stalks. Smoke from Indian Punjab adds to ours. None of this is the farmer's fault alone, just like none of it is one driver's fault alone. It is a system problem and it needs system fixes.
What you can do today. At home, keep windows and doors shut from October to February in Lahore, especially morning and night. A simple HEPA air purifier helps if the family can afford one, around 15,000 to 25,000 rupees, and it lasts for years. If not, even a damp sheet hung in the doorway and a wet mop on the floor twice a day catches a lot of dust. Outside, wear a real N95 or KN95 mask, not a surgical paper mask which does almost nothing for fine particles. Move sports to indoor halls or push them to summer. Keep an inhaler ready if anyone in the family has asthma. And drink water, because hydration helps the lungs clear what they catch.
Estimated time: 12 min