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      Anonymous
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      The health benefits of a brisk walk outdoors for the over-60s can be undone by air pollution on city streets. An interesting report that appeared in the Times of London today should warn many in the larger cities of India about where they go for their daily exercise (walk). According to the report published in The Lancet, walkers should avoid busy city streets and stick to parks and places that are free from cars

      The researchers found that while a stroll in Hyde Park left walkers with improved lung capacity and better blood flow, walking down Oxford Street made their breathing more difficult and increased stiffness in their arteries. Experts urged people to head for parks when taking exercise. However, they said, the findings should also add to pressure on the government to tackle air pollution. Air pollution contributes to about 40,000 premature deaths in the UK every year.

      The researchers indicated that levels of air pollution, including fine particles, black carbon and nitrogen dioxide, were higher on Oxford Street than in Hyde Park. They took 40 healthy volunteers, 40 people with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), and 39 with stable ischaemic heart disease. Among the healthy participants, a walk in Hyde Park improved lung capacity and arterial stiffness for up to 26 hours. A walk on Oxford Street, however, only led to a brief, small increase in lung capacity, while arteries became significantly stiffer.

      Participants with COPD found increases in coughing, sputum production, shortness of breath and wheeze, as well as increased arterial stiffness after a walk on Oxford Street compared with Hyde Park. The research also suggested medication for heart disease, such as statins, might protect against some of the damage caused by air pollution.

      Fan Chung, from the National Heart & Lung Institute at Imperial College London, the paper’s senior author, said: “We suggest that, where possible, older adults walk in parks or other green spaces away from busy roads.” Stephen Holgate, special adviser to the Royal College of Physicians on air quality, said the study provided “yet another demonstration that pollution is eroding the health of ordinary people”. He added: “This important study mandates action to radically reduce pollution at source to enable our cities and towns to be safe places to live in and move around.

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