Everyday we typically inhale the equivalent of two heaping tablespoons of airborne particles that our bodies must process and eliminate. The smallest of these particles can be inhaled and end up settling deep inside the lungs in areas where the body's natural mechanisms can't remove them and this in turn can cause the greatest harm.

Inhaling particles also appears to disrupt the body's ability to regulate the pumping of blood. As particulate counts rise on any given day, a critical indicator called ‘heart rate variability’ can decrease and upset the heart’s beat-to-beat variations. It has been estimated that annually in the United States approximately 64,000 people die prematurely from heart and lung disease due to particulate air pollution.

The issue of gases and air pollution is a wide-ranging and very complex subject. There are thousands of chemicals and chemical compounds that can contaminate the air we breathe. Examples of gasses we are most familiar with are ozone, carbon monoxide, benzene and radon.

When we take a breath contaminants enter the lungs where they are allowed to pass into the bloodstream. Once in the bloodstream they are disbursed throughout the entire body where they can bring about a reaction or negatively impact a person’s health by damaging certain parts of the anatomy.

The effects of air pollution on human health can vary greatly and can give birth to a multitude of health problems. Every contaminant poses its own set of problems. A person’s age, their relative state of well-being, as well as the type and the amount of exposure are all factors in a complex equation.

In the broadest terms the effects can range from itchy eyes and nose, headaches, raspy throat, fatigue, wheezing, long-term acute changes in lung function, respiratory illnesses, impairment of the immune system or a shortened life expectancy.

Numerous studies have demonstrated that the cleaner the air, the healthier it is for people to breath.