This question was raised precisely because the 2008 Olympic Games will be hosted in one of the most polluted capitals in the world. To give you an idea, the city of São Paulo is the 3rd most polluted city in Latin America, but athletes are able to practice their sports calmly. The big problem is that in Beijing the pollution is three times higher than in the capital of São Paulo. The Chinese are investing a lot to get around the situation, more than 17 billion dollars have already been spent, and even so the International Olympic Committee has already admitted that new records cannot be expected outdoors due to contamination atmospheric.
Pollution will certainly affect the performance of athletes, just do the following analysis: an athlete breathes about 20 times more air than the average person, and in Beijing it means breathing in 4 times more CO (carbon monoxide), CO2 (carbon dioxide and ozone than the body tolerates.
The polluted air can generate from cramps to heart attack, see below the consequences of pollution in the human body:
- When carbon dioxide reaches a high concentration in the lungs, it interferes with the work of the red blood cells. Red blood cells are the cells responsible for delivering oxygen to the body.
- Carbon monoxide steals oxygen from the red blood cells, the muscles can then cramp from lack of strength. Lack of oxygen in the brain causes dizziness and can even lead to coma.
- Ozone damages the bloodstream, it has the property of converting cholesterol into fatty plaques, these stick to blood vessels and reduce their flexibility. The heart starts to work under high pressure to keep pumping blood, and this can cause hemorrhages and a heart attack.
By Líria Alves
Graduated in Chemistry
See more!
Will it rain during the Beijing Olympics?
Source: Brazil School - https://brasilescola.uol.com.br/quimica/a-poluicao-prejudica-desempenho-atletas.htm
