air quality can affect students’ decisions to study abroad - air purifier for home use

Ana Cemalovic is a student studying abroad in Shanghai, China.
After her first semester in Shanghai, she felt tired and tired all the time.
She experienced shortness of breath and headaches almost every day, and her asthma attacks were more frequent.
After that, her doctor attributed some of these health problems to air pollution.
Air quality index (AQI)
Is the measurement of air quality at any given time.
Ranging from 0 to 500.
The larger the scale, the higher the air pollution.
AQI above 100 is considered unhealthy and AQI above 300 is dangerous. The U. S.
Environmental Protection Bureau (EPA)
Note that AQI rarely reached more than 200 in the United States except during the wildfire.
Unfortunately, however, other countries
Like China and India
Often faced with high levels of air pollution, usually higher than AQI 200, the Environmental Protection Agency's standard for healthy air.
Air pollution levels in China and India are much higher than those that American college students will face if they stay in the United States.
Even spend a relatively short time in unhealthy air
A few days to a semester
It will adversely affect the health of students.
Those who are most likely to be contaminated with particles (
Type of AQI measurement)
Including people with heart or lung disease, such as asthma.
Inhalation of particulate matter 2. 5 micrometers (PM2. 5)
"Can cause heart attacks and strokes, premature deaths" and "decreased lung development in children, asthma attacks, cough and breathing, and reduced lung function (
Especially in children or people with lung diseases such as asthma)”.
Students with these conditions, such as Cemalovic, need to take these health issues into account in particular when deciding to stay in places where pollution is serious.
Ways to mitigate these health effects include changing your outdoor activities and limiting the polluted air you breathe into your lungs;
You can also wear a N95 mask (
Prevent more than 95% of air pollutants from entering the airway)
Or use an air purifier indoors.
Some study abroad programs, such as the study abroad program at NYU Shanghai, take preventive measures to help students cope with air pollution.
Simone Lavaka, director of health and health at New York University in Shanghai, said that the New York University campus in Shanghai "has an air filtration system" and the dormitory also has an air purifier.
There are also "N95 masks available to students for free ".
In order to check the air quality to determine what method you need to take to stay healthy, there are several apps available.
Apps for FreshIdeas Studio in major Chinese cities include the China Air Quality Index.
This application shows the AQI measured by several different measuring stations.
This includes measurements from the United States. S.
Consulate in Shanghai or the United StatesS.
The Beijing Embassy is usually more accurate than other stations.
Local measurements in China tend to be low, so the air looks healthier than it actually is.
Before deciding to study somewhere, students should make sure they understand the potential impact this place may have on their health.
Kylee Borger is a student at New York University in Shanghai and also a reporter for 2015 spring college students.
The story first appeared on the University of America today Blog, a news source produced by student journalists for college students.
The blog closed in September 20.