SPECIAL FEATURE: Know the health effects of air pollution
Naidu urged the pubic to make an appointment with a general practitioner to get examined if they suspect they have symptoms of lung disease.
According to physician Dr Kuven Naidu of Life The Glynnwood, particles in air pollution can cause lung diseases.
“Exposure to air pollution can cause respiratory side effects such as asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and chronic sinusitis. Depending on the size of particles they can pass through the lung and enter the general circulation causing issues such as an ischaemic stroke, heart disease and various other systemic illnesses.”
Naidu said during the winter period, more people suffer from exacerbations of COPD and develop lower respiratory tract infections due to the burning of biofuels.
“In Africa, a lot of people use wood fires, biomass fuel and paraffin to keep warm and all of this damages the air quality especially if it’s in a poorly ventilated area. This can cause severe respiratory and cardiac diseases going forward. There’s a whole lot of health risk factors that pollution can cause, once individuals are exposed to these toxins.”
Naidu said during every breath, small particles can get into one’s blood stream and cause inflammation in different organs. He said this can then trigger various cardiovascular and other systemic diseases.
He shared that over the years they have seen an increase in the number of patients with respiratory illnesses and surprisingly some of the patients are non-smokers and have lived in Benoni for many years.
The medical doctor said the symptoms of lung diseases starts with chronic cough, shortness of breath and it can worsen to a point that a patient may require home oxygen due to the lung taking strain.
Naidu urged the pubic to make an appointment with a general practitioner to get examined if they suspect they have symptoms of lung disease.
“Everything is a spectrum of disease. It starts small, so rather sort it out in the early stages to prevent disease progression.”
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