It was the early 20th century when in London people see a mysterious cloudy haze in the environment having the specific odor. Researcher worked on it and revealed that it is a combination of smoke and fog so named as smog. From that day the smog appeared in various countries at different times. Nowadays it is one of the most alarming environmental hazard threatening the humans and the whole nature. So it is the need of the moment to know about this mysterious life threat.
How it Forms?
The basic cause of smog formation is the air pollution. The gases from automobiles, factories, and coal burning contain volatile organic compounds like sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides.These pollutants react with the ground level ozone in the presence of the bright sunlight. And the resultant products appear as the dense fumes which mix with the wind and form a dense haze. This dense haze is termed as the smog.
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Why it Appear in Winter Season?
During the cold and damp winter days, the wind blows in the low speed and the climate is calm. This calmness of the climate helps the fine particles of pollutants and ozone to become slack at a place for a long duration of time. If wind speed increases then these particles will scatter to clear the horizon.
How it Affects the Living?
When smog formed and covered a specific area the human lives of that area are horribly at risk. This hazardous haze can cause many ailments from minor discomforts to lethal conditions. It may affect all age sectors in following ways:
- Respiratory tract burning
- Shortness of breath
- Sudden sneezing and coughing
- Nose and eye irritation
- Inflammation of lung tissue
- Decreased lung capacity
- Chronic chest pain
- Skin itching
- Asthma. The people having this condition before may get it more badly in smog. Visit Marham to consult a lung specialist/pulmonologist in Islamabad for better management of asthma.
- Alzheimer’s patient also gets the condition more badly.
- The pregnant lady exposed to smog may give rise to the newborn with a certain birth defect.
- Kids and children may get severe respiratory disorders that may necessitate consulting the best pulmonologist in Karachi, Lahore, Islamabad or any main city of Pakistan.
Preventive Measures
Indeed this dusty haze is lethal in its effects but it does not mean that humans are helpless in front of it. The deadly effects of the smog can be reduced or completely avoided by strictly obeying the following measures:
- Avoid exposure to the smog and sit inside as more as possible.
- Use medical masks and glasses when going outside.
- Drink plenty of water.
- Keep the doors and windows of the house closed.
How to Fight Against it?
But important among all that everyone should think seriously about the environmental health and clarity. If environment will be clean enough the disastrous things like smog will never appear to threaten all of us. So everyone should play its role to protect the climate for his own protection by taking these steps:
- Lowers the use of personal vehicle to reduce air pollution.
- Properly manage the industrial fumes so that they cannot enter in the open air.
- Reduce the use of coal and think about alternative safe fuels.
Smog is a serious health hazard and we should be observing strict measure to ensure health safety of ourselves and our loved ones. Above all being responsible citizens of society we all should participate in reducing environmental pollution and causes of smog, which is the only permanent solution to this adversity.