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| The last column discussed what sports injuries are and how to assess their severity. This column will tell you what to do when you have an acute sports injury. The three main goals... read more |
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| Acute Sports Injuries are traumatic in nature. Some are very dramatic such as when Mike Foligno broke his leg at centre ice the season before last. Although his was a bone injury m... read more |
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Paul
Papoutsakis |
Paul graduated from UBC with his degree in Human Kinetics and then completed his Diploma in Sports Injury Management at Sheridan College. He is a Certified Athletic Therapist... read more |
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Exercise and Air Pollution | Tuesday, April 11, 2006 |
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 As spring is here and summer is not far behind we now look more for outside exercise as opposed to the indoor work outs we did to avoid the cold and snow. For those of us who live in the larger or industrialized areas we have to think of another hazard. The air pollution problem has gotten worse in the last couple of decades and although there are measure to help control the pollution, it is still a big factor.
The air we breath on a daily occurrence is filled with various pollutants. These include carbon monoxide, ozone, hydrocarbons, and other industrial waste. As we exercise and we increase our breathing rate we therefore increase the amount of pollutants we inhale. The two main pollutants that we have to be concerned about is carbon monoxide and ozone.
The main source of carbon monoxide in the environment is automobile smoke and cigarette smoke. The main problem `with carbon monoxide is that it loves red blood cells. Once in the body it competes with oxygen for spots on the red blood cells. The red blood cells deliver the much needed oxygen to the exercising muscle. Therefore if the spots on the red blood cell which are normally reserved for oxygen are taken up by the carbon monoxide their is a decrease in exercise potential. The heart is then asked to work harder to deliver more oxygen to the muscles. This results in a decrease in maximum cardiac output and a decreased work output.
People who liove in rural areas obviously have lower blood carbon monoxide levels than city dwellers(about one half). If you merely stand near heavy traffic you will increase your levels 5 times, and exercising for 30 minutes in heavy traffic will increase it ten fold or the equivalent of smoking one half pack of cigarettes a day. In the worst case scenario, a study done in New York had runners run down the New York streets during rush hour. The amount of carbon monoxide in their lungs was the equivalent of smoking TWO AND A HALF packs of cigarettes a day.
The carbon monoxide lingers in the system for a long time where it is only half eliminated from the body in five hours. This can be expedited by breathing pure oxygen. Be aware that carbon monoxide can linger long after the traffic is gone especially if their is no wind and in shady areas which seems to trap the bad air.
Ozone results from the sun acting on nitrogen dioxide and other hydrocarbons. It causes increased airway resistance producing a asthma type situation or making someone with asthma that much worse. You are forced to breath harder to get the needed oxygen to the lungs. It can reduce your exercise capacity 10%. Worse than that, long term exposure can lead to chronic lung disease. Ozone levels are worse on bright sunny days.
The final complication is that pollution is said to make you more prone to colds.
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