HEALTH SPECIAL..The Wrong Conditioning

As the mercury soars, most of us treat the workplace as an oasis from the outside heat. But the office AC could be the reason for your headaches or worse, that persistent wheezing

Trawl the internet and you will be hit by some chilling facts about air conditioning. Apparently ACs can cause irreversible medical conditions, land you in the surgery room and even kill you! But then don’t believe everything you read. ACs might not be the carriers (ahem!) of doom but working in an office where the concept of cooling means ‘chilled to the bones’ makes you realise the perils of the office air conditioning.

In a 2004 study published in the International Journal of Epidemiology, the office AC was found to be a big contributing factor to the sick-building syndrome (SBS). The Environmental Protection Agency notes that SBS refers to symptoms associated with large numbers of people getting sick in a building, but when they leave, their symptoms disappear. According to the study, people working in office buildings with central air conditioning had more symptoms of illness than those who did not work in buildings with central air.
Out of Breath
People with immunodeficiency and respiratory infections are more prone to AC ill effects, according to Dr Danish Jamal, head of the department, respiratory diseases at Sarvodaya Hospital & Research Centre in Faridabad. Those with lung diseases like asthma, bronchitis, or smokers, are the highrisk category. Dr Pramod Kumar, director of interventional cardiology at Fortis Hospital, Shalimar Bagh, New Delhi would also put those with any history of coronary artery disease in the category. He says, “Even a short time breathing of very cold air is enough to put a heart patient at risk.”
If you don’t have a medical condition, then too you are likely to develop wheezing, headaches, dry eyes, skin irritation and muscle aches. “Cold air starts affecting our body immediately as it’s is unable to cope this rapid temperature change,” says Dr Navneet Kaur, internal medicine, Nova Medical Centres, New Delhi.
Dry Days Ahead
Dr Jamal advises using UV radiation fitted ACs, “as they may be helpful in preventing respiratory problems associated with AC use to a significant extent”. Cold air can also lead to dryness in the skin and eyes. A WHO study indicates that the incidence of the syndrome jumps from 10% to 20% in the summer with employees who work in air-conditioned enclosed spaces that have no ventilation, says Dr Tyag Murti Sharma, clinical director, ophthalmology, Medfort Hospitals, New Delhi.
Dr Sharma says that people who wear contact lenses might need to rethink their lens usage during the AC season. “The best option is to use a humidifier or artificial tears,” he says. Drinking more water and including fatty acids found in flaxseed, fish oil, almonds in your daily diet also helps to counter the drying effects of the AC. Be prepared: carry an extra wrap or jacket.

(ET120304)