THE AIR WE BREATHE
Now that most of us live in or near cities, our weekend escapes are something we look forward to, even crave.
We are drawn to the big skies, the dark nights unsullied by light pollution, and what seems to be clean country air. Back in the city, we eat healthily, get enough sleep, drink enough fluids, exercise regularly, but don't pay much mind to one vital aspect of our existence: the air we breathe.
Our city lungs
We spend the vast majority of our time breathing in urban air, which leaves a lot to be desired. Outdoors, we are exposed to the dust and emissions from hundreds of thousands of vehicles, as well as industrial pollution. Indoors, we breathe in the chemical cleaners, air fresheners, and nano-particles from wall paints, third-hand cigarette smoke, and plastic-based carpets and fittings.
In a warped way, we are the filters: our lungs breathe in dirty air, trap it in our tissues, and we breathe out cleaner air. This is hardly the way we want to treat our lungs when we spend so much time training them to power us in our trail running.
A powerful way to get a sense of what's actually in our air is to go outside in the
