Denver’s streak of poor air quality days has put parents in a bind, forcing them to decide between the risks of pollution and the obvious downsides of preventing kids from playing outside.
The metro area typically deals with high ozone levels in the summer because of the intense sunshine acting on chemicals in the air, plus the fact that the city sits in a bowl below the Rocky Mountains. In addition, smoke from wildfires burning across Colorado and neighboring states temporarily worsens air quality.
Both factors combined in late June and early July to create air that was unhealthy for sensitive groups, and occasionally, the general public, to breathe.
Unfortunately, young children are a sensitive group.
The lungs are larger, as a proportion of body size, in babies and toddlers than in adults, said Dr. Deniz Kolozs, associate medical director of pediatrics at Kaiser Permanente’s Aurora Centrepoint clinic. When kids inhale the same amount of polluted air as adults, they’re more likely to see a negative effect, she said.
Not all children are equally sensitive, however. Inflammation adds up, so children with asthma and seasonal allergies will have more breathing problems at the same level of pollution than kids whose airways aren’t already irritated, Kolozs said.
Parents can safely let most kids play outside even in the summer as long as they watch for symptoms, Kolozs said. If children are coughing, wheezing or just not acting like themselves, parents should move playtime inside, she said. If they don’t improve within 20 to 30 minutes, parents should call a doctor.
If a child’s breathing is extremely labored or their lips start to turn blue, call 911.
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“It’s case by case and child by child,” she said. “If they seem like they don’t feel good, they probably don’t.”
Kids with severe lung conditions who have to be outside on smoky days could reduce their risk by wearing well-fitted N95 masks, but obviously not all children will tolerate that, Kolozs said. Children younger than 2 shouldn’t wear masks because of the risk they’ll breathe in too much of their exhaled carbon dioxide.
Evidence about the long-term risks of polluted air is still emerging.
Researchers have found possible links between heavy wildfire smoke during pregnancy and later autism diagnoses in offspring, as well as preterm birth and low birthweight. At the other end of life, studies suggest a possible link between air pollution and depression among older people, as well as an increased risk of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, commonly known as Lou Gehrig’s disease.
Long-term exposure to pollution isn’t good for children, but keeping them cooped up for the whole summer also isn’t healthy, Kolozs said. Parents can check Denver’s Love My Air website to keep up with fluctuating air quality and try to plan outdoor play for the least risky times, she said.
“Kids need to be outside,” she said.
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