1, dark vegetables to protect the first line of defense
The human lungs have a self-purifying function. Lungs, like a tree that grows upside down. Bronchi through the lung door into the lungs, start branching, one level down, to the final fine bronchi, to the alveoli like leaves growing on fine branches, there are about 24 levels of branching.
After entering the nasal cavity, the air travels down the airway, through a number of bends, and then through the trachea of varying widths, so that the outside air constantly touches the wall and touches the warm, moist mucous membrane and is heated and humidified. After the curved respiratory tract, not only the air temperature and humidity increase, and its flow rate is buffered, particles are filtered, adhesion or deposition, the air inhaled into the alveoli is thus purified.
The surface of the human respiratory tract is covered by mucosal epithelial cells. The cup cells of the mucosal epithelium and the glands of the submucosa can secrete some mucus, which is sticky and tough and can be thick or thin, covering the surface of the respiratory tract and protecting the mucosal cells of the respiratory tract. These mucus also have many anti-microbial components, and some microorganisms are adsorbed by the mucus and inactivated by the action of these immune substances.
The mucus cilia transport system is the “scavenger” of the respiratory tract. In the rhythmic inward and outward movement of the cilia, the particles deposited in the respiratory mucosa are expelled to the larynx together with the mucus.
Generally, particles with a diameter of more than 10 microns are blocked out by the nose; and particles between 2.5 microns and 10 microns are also generally driven out of the body by the mucous membrane layer of the respiratory tract.
The mucous membrane layer of the respiratory tract, which is very delicate, is extremely vulnerable to damage, so how should we protect it? Supplementation with foods rich in vitamin A and beta-carotene!
One of the most important physiological functions of vitamin A is to maintain the epithelial cells sound and stable cell membranes. Studies show that about 70% of children and elderly people with recurrent respiratory infections have lower than normal levels of vitamin A in their serum.
Animal liver, egg yolk and dairy products are the richest in vitamin A.
What about plant foods? The precursor of vitamin A is beta-carotene, which is mostly found in orange-colored plants, such as carrots, sweet potatoes with red hearts, corn, and persimmons. In addition, many dark green vegetables, such as spinach, kale, leeks and pea shoots are also richer in carotenoids.
After the human body ingests carotene from plant foods, it can be transformed into vitamin A in the liver and intestinal mucosa to be used by the body.
2, hydration to improve the self-purification ability of the lungs
Chinese medicine emphasizes that “the lungs like to moisten but not dry”, why? The reason is that the lungs are an open system, from the nasal cavity to the trachea and then to the lungs, constituting the pathway of gas. The total area of the alveoli is about 70 square meters, and it is the largest gateway for the body to communicate with the outside world through breathing, contacting and exchanging with the atmosphere at any time, breathing oxygen into the blood and exhaling carbon dioxide out of the body.
The water in the lungs can be dissipated with the expulsion of gas. And dry air is more likely to take away moisture. If the body is dehydrated, the phlegm in the small bronchi becomes sticky and not easy to cough up, or even blocked, it will affect the barrier function of the first line of defense, and even cause inflammation in the lungs and bronchi, which will lead to damage to the respiratory system.
So what to do? Regulate it from within and give it enough water. Active hydration, preferably plain water, research has proven that plain water has a very desirable physiological activity on human metabolism, such as, water is easily absorbed by the body through the cell membrane, so that the human tissue lactate dehydrogenase activity, etc..
It is especially important to rehydrate in the morning. Because after a night’s sleep, urination, skin evaporation and mouth and nose breathing, etc. have made a lot of water loss, often leaving the body in a dehydrated state; autumn and winter, dry weather, more need to take the initiative to replenish water. Drinking water varies from person to person and from time to time, generally 2000 ml per day is appropriate.
Chinese medicine believes that “the form of cold drinking cold is hurt lungs”, so avoid cold drinks, to water warm is appropriate.
3.Vegetables and fruits are good for fighting against the harm of Pm2.5
Pm2.5, a pollutant particle less than or equal to 2.5 microns in diameter, is known as lung-accessible particulate matter, because the physiological structure of the human body determines that there is no filtering and blocking ability for particles below 2.5 microns.
These particles themselves are both a pollutant and a carrier of heavy metals, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and other toxic substances, mixed with a large number of sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxides, bacteria, viruses, can directly invade the human respiratory system, directly adhering to the respiratory tract, arriving and remaining in the alveoli for weeks, months or years, stimulating damage to the respiratory mucosa, causing coughing, dry throat itching and other discomfort, causing rhinitis, pharyngitis Upper respiratory tract infections, bronchitis, asthma and other respiratory system diseases.
They may also enter the circulatory system through the exchange of air and blood, leading to the whole body and causing systemic pathological effects.
For example, fine particulate matter can alter the autonomic function of the heart. Autonomic nerves mainly regulate the body’s heart rate variability (refers to the change in heart rate rhythm over time), short-term (1 to 2 hours) exposure to polluting particulate matter, heart rate variability is shown to decrease, which can induce arrhythmias, myocardial infarction, myocardial ischemia, heart failure, stroke, exacerbation of peripheral arterial disease, and sudden death.
What about long-term exposure? Fine particulate matter adsorbs a variety of heavy metals on its surface, some of which have similar chemical and biological properties to calcium ions and can compete with them for sites and cause an imbalance in intracellular calcium homeostasis. High intracellular calcium concentrations can inhibit the synthesis of ATP (adenosine triphosphate, one of the main energy substances in the body) and contribute to increased oxygen radical production.
Free radicals are molecules with one or more unpaired electrons that compete for electrons from cellular tissues in order to stabilize their structure, which can damage cell membranes, denature proteins, render enzymes inactive, peroxidize lipids, etc.
Free radicals that damage vascular endothelial cells in this way can increase the risk of many cardiovascular diseases such as hypertension and systemic atherosclerosis.
Free radicals that damage DNA can lead to cellular carcinogenesis. The increase of lung cancer incidence and mortality in China over the years is related to the serious air pollution, and Pm2.5 is the main culprit. According to statistics, the growth of lung cancer patients is mainly concentrated in people over 50 years old. However, in recent years, the fastest growth rate is among those aged 3 to 50. The youngest lung cancer patient in East China is only 8 years old, and the cause of her lung cancer is that her family lives by the road, which caused malignant changes due to long-term inhalation of road dust.