It is December, the most wonderful time of the year. Covered by a blanket of soft white snow, we create snow angels and build a snowman with our loved ones. However, the air quality tends to drop during this season, and we often overlook the severity of air pollution in the winter.
Hence, it is crucial for us to understand its causes, health effects, and how we can initiate measures to prevent pollutants from seizing our pleasant time of the year.

Most people acknowledge the prevalence of poor air quality in the springtime, but surprisingly air pollution peaks during the winter season. Air pollution is primarily caused by excessive household heating and emissions from vehicles. As such, fossils fuels, which pollute our air the most, are increasingly burnt in this time of the year, accumulating carbon monoxide and other toxins in the atmosphere. To make matters worse, temperature inversion traps air pollution beneath the cloud.
During the winter, there is a layer of warm air (inversion layer) in between layers of cold air, and the warm layer prevents the flow of air; therefore, pollutants circulate near the surface, instigating an acute air quality. 

Air pollution is known for posing serious health effects upon a wide range of organ systems in the human body: respiratory, cardiovascular, and immune. Most notably, poor air quality contaminates the air that one breathes in and triggers respiratory diseases such as pneumonia, asthma, and bronchitis. Furthermore, long -term exposure to air pollution can lead to lung cancer and eventual death. In addition, exacerbate cardiovascular diseases such as high blood pressure, heart attack, and diabetes are exacerbated in poor air conditions. Air pollution also incites problems in the immune system as studies have shown that the function of regulatory T-cells is suppressed in the presence of severe air quality. Weakened immune system increases one’s vulnerability to respiratory and cardiovascular diseases. In order to avert these detrimental health consequences, we need to take the initiative to reduce, not cope with, air pollution.

Initiative can be taken at a governmental and individual level. Air pollution can be drastically decreased if governments support the reduction of global carbon emission. From an economic standpoint, nations may be hesitant to agree to such initiatives, but in the long run, sustaining a healthy population is much more significant than short-term economic benefits. Moreover, it is necessary for individuals to step up and do their part to reduce air pollution. For example, people can wear extra layers of clothes to save fossil fuels from being used to heat homes and utilize public transportation more often to conserve gas from running cars. If we participate in decreasing air pollution, we will be able to truly cherish the most wonderful time of the year with our loved ones.

안다인 강남포스트 학생기자  webmaster@ignnews.kr

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