Over the last week we’ve been hearing numerous stories of friends, family members and loved ones of Thrive Tribe getting impacted by what’s happening to the air in Delhi. With crop burning and Diwali crackers, the air in Delhi and surrounding areas is now a poisonous mix of particulate matter, volatile organic compounds, carbon monoxide, sulphur oxide, nitrogen oxide, cadmium and other chemicals and heavy metals.
How do these affect your health?
Particulate matter(PM) is a complex mixture of extremely small particles and liquid droplets. These when inhaled affects both the heart and lungs, numerous studies have proven the negative impact of PM on your heart and lung health.
Volatile Organic Compounds or VOC’s are carcinogenic in nature and can trigger genetic mutation at a cellular level
Carbon monoxide can cause dizziness, sweating, restlessness, visual distortion, nausea and even loss of consciousness
Sulphur oxide and Nitrogen oxide are both irritants and can irritate mucus layers in your eyes, nose, throat and respiratory tract which explains why everyone’s eyes are burning
Apart from this, this air can also impact your cognitive ability- your ability to think and work productively. Your brain needs oxygen to function optimally, and when you are breathing poisons instead of oxygen it starts creating symptoms like excessive irritability, anger, and loss of productivity.
Of course, this (the Gas Chamber called Delhi) is a monstrosity that we have created and it teaches us there really are no limits to human stupidity.
However, now that the problem is created and damage is being done, here are some solutions from Thrive to help you get through this situation and allow your body to heal.
Step 1 : Create as much clean breathable air around you as possible
Invest in a good quality air purifier at least for your bedroom– this is where you spend the longest time and sleep is when your body is naturally in a recovery mode. Ensure that you are breathing clean air in this room. Get a H12 or H13 HEPA filter with a Clean Air Delivery Rate (CADR) of 2 at medium speed. Ensure it has a carbon filter that weighs at least 500 gms. Pick one that has a noise level below 50 DB at medium speed with a washable pre-filter. If it has sensors to indicate Air quality then that’s even better. Keep the air purifier on for as long as there are people in the room.
Bring in indoor plants, they are a gift from this planet to us. They remove pollutants by absorbing harmful gases and VOC’s and create clean air for us. The best ones to get are Money plant ( Five 8 inch pots per person), Areca Palm (Four shoulder high plants per person), Snake Plant (Six plants per person), Bamboo (Four shoulder high plants)
Avoid lighting agarbattis, using candles and room fresheners and loose powders- these add to indoor air pollution
Wear a good quality air mask when outdoors
Step 2 : Ensure you eat food that heals and regenerates your body
Food is central to healing. Making sure your diet is healthy-including adequate protein and nutrients from quality sources devoid of harmful processed entities is crucial.Check out our article on the basic principles of healthy eating for more details.
Step 3: Supplement with nutrients that support respiratory and cardiovascular health and act as antioxidants in your body.
Which ones?
- B-12
- Zinc
- Vitamin C
- MSM (Methylsulfonylmethane)
- NAC (N- Acetyl Cysteine)
- Magnesium
Step 4: Bring in the healing power of herbs and herbal teas
- Nettle leaf tea
- Lemon balm tea
- Thrive’s Healing tea
- Lomatium root
Step 5: Practice breath work
If you have a regular breath work practice like Pranayam, you could continue with it. IF you don’t have one, then this one by Soma Breath is absolutely incredible. Click here for a link to the Breath meditation
Implement these 5 steps, and we guarantee you will breathe a little easier despite the pollution. If you need to learn more or need help with specific symptoms, please reach out to us and we’ll be more than happy to help.
