Every Breath You Take (with apologies to "The Police")

While there are many "firsts" I'm happy to celebrate (birthdays, steps, losing teeth, etc.) today in Atlanta marked a first that I've come to dread each year around this time.

Today, when I opened my newspaper, I was greeted with word that our air quality was the worst in the nation this Monday, with a code orange smog alert. This level of pollution signifies a risk to sensitive groups including kids, the elderly or those with heart or lung impairments. As a mom of young kids, I find this particularly troubling knowing this is just the first of many such days to come.

According to Children's Healthcare of Atlanta (CHOA), on days like this, sensitive groups, including kids, should avoid strenuous outdoor activity between the hours of 2pm and 7pm, when ozone levels are at their highest. The cruel irony of these so-called "smog alerts" is that they come about at a time when people are normally scheduling more outdoor activities and it's difficult to tell kids to curtail their time on the playground, ball field or in the pool when the season is just picking up. 

The color-coded smog alert system ranges from green (healthy) to purple (everyone should avoid being outdoors). Before I had kids, I remember visiting a friend in Los Angeles who lamented that her daughter's school suspended recess on high pollution days. I can understand that disappointment, but honestly, I'd rather my kids not be exposed to potentially life-altering levels of pollution when they could just as easily amuse themselves inside (though the quality of indoor air is also debatable, but that's for another post!). 

A recent report found that more than half of the American population live in areas where the air quality is subpar. As my pal noted, several California cities ranked high on the American Lung Association's list of places with the worst air quality. Contrary to popular belief, bad air isn't just a danger to those with asthma or other respiratory ailments. Ongoing pollution and persistent low air quality can have longterm effects such as low birth weight, diabetes, heart attack and stroke and even shorter life span. 

I don't know about you but as someone who isn't a smoker or a coal miner, I was sort of hoping to keep my lungs as pristine as possible, while still going about the mundane task of breathing each day. I can coat my skin in sunscreen for protection from the damaging ultraviolet rays, but there's no magic elixir when it comes to protecting my body's insides. When I moved to Atlanta in 1992, I didn't realize my health would take such a hit. Now, 19 years later, I'm saddled with seasonal asthma and lingering guilt about the damage the air out there is doing to my kids' young and susceptible bodies. 

Last year, there were 25 high smog warnings in Atlanta during the primary ozone season. Fortunately, while the air remains filthy in many areas, it's actually an improvement over year's past. Higher emission standards for both cars and pollution spewing factories have managed to make a positive dent in the air quality. So, if you need yet another reason to "go green," this is a biggie.

The good news is, if you're looking to relocate to an area with clean air, you have some swanky ones to choose from. Two such cities fit the bill, logging zero smog days in the past year. Both Honolulu and Sante Fe, NM ranked tops for easy breathing.

I just celebrated my 41st birthday and this year also marks that same milestone for the Clean Air Act. According to the Environmental Protection Agency which oversees that act, each of us takes in approximately 3,000 gallons of air daily. So you could say, To "air" is human, but to breathe in clean air, wouldn't that just be divine?