숨막히는 미세먼지, 발달기 청소년 '폐' 건강에 더 치명적

So here in South Korea, people are still inhaling fine dust particles from the polluted air, and doctors say that's especially bad for teenagers because their lungs... are not yet fully developed.
They warn of serious consequences if teenagers are left exposed.
For more, we turn to our Choi Si-young.
Breathing becomes harder when there's a lot of fine dust in the air.
Adding to the misery is wearing a face mask all the time,... KNOWING some of the particles will still get into the body because no consumer face mask is one-hundred-percent dust-proof.
Experts say these particles are so fine that once they pass through our airways, they get stuck in our lungs.
And that's a big problem especially for teenagers, because the residue hampers their lungs' development.
"If teenagers are repeatedly exposed to fine dust, they will have underdeveloped lungs.
As adults, they could suffer from chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases."
Doctors say,... while there is no medicine guaranteed to counter the effects of fine dust particles,... such as breathing difficulties,... it does help to stay hydrated.
"Experts say that staying indoors is best, but if you must head out outside, they recommend wearing a face mask,... and drinking hot water after returning home."
Along with our lungs,... our eyes are also exposed to fine dust everyday.
Protecting eyes from dust particles is tricky because there is no mask.
Doctors recommend the following.
"When fine dust concentrations are high, I recommend refraining from wearing contact lenses. And it's a good idea to use eye drops more often to wash the dust particles out of the eyes."
Health experts say that with more studies to be done on the negative effects of fine dust on our bodies, people should follow doctor recommendations in the meantime.
Choi Si-young, Arirang News.