Stuck Inside, Smoke and Heat Are Coming…Early: Part One
It feels like it never ends: smoke from the 2018 fires; the COVID-19 pandemic in 2019/20; the forecast for an early, hot, dry 2020, meaning that wildfires and smoke are coming back. Except this time, no office, store, rec facility or shopping mall to escape to; no clean, filtered, sterilized and cool air to enjoy if you don’t have sufficient filtration and air conditioning in your home.
When smoke from forest and field fires enters your community, it often causes problems. Smoke can also hurt your pets. The biggest health risk comes from small particles in the smoke. These particulates get in your family’s eyes and respiratory systems, which frequently causes burning eyes, runny noses, coughing, or illnesses like bronchitis or other viral illnesses. If you have a heart or lung problem, these particulates make how you feel even worse. Problems may appear sooner if you:
- Have heart or lung disease (e.g., congestive heart failure, angina, COPD, asthma)
- Are an older adult (especially if you have heart or lung disease)
- Are pregnant (ready for the baby boom from stay at home orders?)
- Are a child with still developing respiratory system, yet are more active outside
- Are involved in strenuous outdoor work or outdoor sports
- Are a tobacco or cannabis smoker, or perhaps you vape
by Carla Berezowski,
Home Comfort Expert and Aging at Home Specialist
