A new study published in Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise by Brazilian researchers provide new insight about running in poluted-air environments:
Polluted air is believed to be harmful to the lungs, since it passes through the nose filtering and penetrates through the lungs and causing inflammation. Therefore, it may be a cause for respiratory diseases such as Asthma. On the other side, it’s known that aerobic exercise fights inflammation and oxidative stress. So the question is which one of them is stronger? The harm of pollution or the healing of exercise?
As this study suggested, the net benefits of exercise, even in polluted conditions, outweigh the risks of inflammation by longterm exposure to pollution. This is especially a good news for runners in polluted cities across the world.