'Long-term effects on brain make children…': Medanta doctor on air pollution

Delhi's air quality improved marginally on Wednesday morning owing to relatively better meteorological conditions.

Long-term effects of air pollution on the brain make the children hyper-irritable, a senior doctor at Medanta Hospital said. Dr Arvind Kumar, chairman of Institute of Chest Surgery, Medanta, told news agency ANI that the toxins from the pollutants lead to neuro-inflammation which increases the risk of stroke in elderly people by 10 times. (Construction workers in Delhi to get ₹5,000 aid till pollution related ban: CM)

With air quality deteriorating in the national capital, its impact on health has become a cause of concern for the residents

“Long-term effects on the brain make the children hyper-irritable. I think it's neuro-inflammation because of the toxins from the pollutants. In elderly people, it increases the risk of stroke by 10 times,” ANI quoted Kumar as saying.

With air quality deteriorating in the national capital, its impact on health has become a cause of concern for the residents. Kumar said that sore eyes and throat, burning in eyes and nose, and dry-itchy eyes are among the most common complaints by people.

“As smoke goes inside the chest, it causes immediate acute inflammation in the windpipe, and lungs. Then these toxic chemicals get absorbed from the lungs, they go to the blood, through which they circulate everywhere from head to toe, affecting every organ,” ANI quoted the doctor as saying.

Kumar noted the increase in number of patients in ICUs with chest infections and pneumonia.

“It's a proof documented fact that following the peaks of pollution, there's a recorded increase in the number of people getting admitted to ICUs with pneumonia and chest infections,” he added.

Delhi's air quality improved marginally on Wednesday morning owing to relatively better meteorological conditions, with the Commission for Air Quality Management saying there is no immediate need to implement curbs under the fourth stage of the Graded Response Action Plan. The AQI of the city stood at 376 at 9 am. The air quality is likely to improve further on the back of stronger winds from Thursday, forecasters said.