Red alert: A simple surgical mask will not help

Doctors are urging that people with respiratory problems, patients with cardiovascular problems and oncological patients with lung malignancies should not leave the house from 8am to 6pm.
Bearing in mind that the heating season has not yet started, and that private fireplaces and heat plants are one of the three main pollutants in our country, the question is what kind of air will we breathe at the start of winter season, Blic reported.
In Valjevo, one of the most polluted Serbian cities, irrespective of the Indian summer, people already breathe heavily, and quality measurements over the last seven days show that air is polluted at the fourth category level, Blic writes.
All of this is already particularly risky for the patients with respiratory problems, patients with cardiovascular problems, and oncological patients with lung malignancies. When, during the winter months, the level of air pollution is higher, we unfortunately expect that other vulnerable categories will be at risk, such as children and pregnant women. Therefore, in periods of peak values of PM-10 particles, usually from 8am to 6pm, the vulnerable categories should reduce going out and any physical activity, spending more time at home", oncologist Zoran Zivkovic, PhD, President of the Vranje Health Council, said for "Blic" daily.
He recalls that recent research by the Batut Institute has shown that "5,400 people die prematurely in Serbia due to the increased air pollution", and "if this methodology were applied to Valjevo, it would mean that we have 60 premature deaths due to air pollution on annual level."
Dr Goran Belojevic, a hygiene expert, and a full professor at the School of Medicine, advises that people should spend as little time outside as possible and if...