INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Image copyrightAFPEvery winter, a thick blanket of smog descends on large parts of India and people begin a losing fight against the
frightening levels of pollution
Thousands land up in doctors' clinics with breathlessness, fill up hospital beds with lung problems and many are forced to stay off school
or work.And with measures announced by the federal and state governments to curb pollution not making any impact, many are finding their own
Here are some of the most popular ways Indians try to beat pollution - but do any of them really workBuying air purifiersA quick search on
Amazon India for air purifiers throws up more than 2,000 results and a cursory glance shows they are not cheap
But in the past few years, many Indians have begun investing in indoor air purifiers in the belief that they will help improve the air
In March, a report said the government had bought a total of 140 purifiers to ensure that officials, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi,
But are they effective"Air purifiers work only in an environment that's totally sealed," says Dr Karan Madan, associate professor of
pulmonary medicine at Delhi's All India Institute of Medical Sciences hospital.So every time you open a door or a window in your home "the
indoor air quality immediately mimics the outdoor air quality" - simply put, if the pollution levels outdoors are high, they'll instantly
become high indoors too.And the question then is: can you sit pretty much all the time in a room that's completely shut off "It's not really
practical," says Dr Madan
Face masksOnline retailers in India have thousands of options for masks
You can also buy them at your neighbourhood chemists.Some are simple cloth masks while others come with high-grade filters to keep toxins
They're available in black or can be multi-coloured
And thousands of people in the capital, which is among the worst affected by pollution, are wearing them
But can a face mask protect you from the deadly tiny particulate matter that enter deep into the lungs and play havoc with your healthA mask
with a capacity to filter out these tiny microns can help but, Dr Madan says, they will have to be worn all the time and be completely
sealed around the nose and the mouth."But these high filtration capacity masks can make breathing difficult, especially during exercise
And how are you going to make children wear it when they go out to play"These are solutions that are very difficult to use," he
adds.Gooseberries and turmeric Last week, as Delhi's air quality began worsening, schools in Delhi started taking precautionary measures -
morning assemblies were suspended, outdoor games were restricted, and one school began distributing gooseberries to students.That's because
traditional Indian wisdom says the sour green fruits are loaded with anti-oxidants and can help boost immunity and reduce the impact of
pollution.Nutritionists have also suggested drinking a concoction made with turmeric, ginger and Indian basil, or eating jaggery or
Image copyrightAFPImage caption
Doctors say the number of patients with respiratory problems has risen in the past week
Dr Madan says he's not sure to what extent these claims are backed by scientific data and that there is no evidence to
suggest they work.He says any food that contains vitamins and anti-oxidants is good for overall health, but it doesn't prevent exposure to
pollution.In the past week, Dr Madan says, the number of patients he's seen with "asthma-like symptoms" has risen, with many complaining
about a "burning-itching sensation in the nose and throat".Describing it as a "serious health emergency", he says children, the elderly and
the asthmatic are more vulnerable to bad air and he's advising them to "avoid outdoor activities and heavy exertion"
The adverse impact of pollution is already established on the lung and heart, but newer research points to its impact on our cognitive
abilities too - a recent study found pollution also causes a reduction in intelligence.Aloe vera, Mother-in-Law's TongueIt's well known that
trees help absorb pollution, but newspapers and websites in India are increasingly talking about indoor plants that can suck out toxins from
inside homes.The list of top air purifying plants includes, among others, aloe vera, the spider plant, a type of lily and the snake plant
(also known as Mother-in-Law's Tongue).Dr Madan says the claim that they have an impact on the air quality needs to be backed by
evidence."Someone please do a study on pollution within homes with and without these plants
We need very good quality data to see if this intervention can be effective."But Dr Madan is clear the situation is so bad there's really
only one course of action - and that is to tackle the pollution itself
We have to control the source of pollution, that is the most important part."
