- Canadian wildfires created dense smoke across the Northeast and Midwest, with air quality reaching hazardous levels that posed serious health risks to vulnerable populations including pregnant women and those with asthma, COPD, heart disease, or chronic kidney disease.
- Wildfire smoke exposure causes symptoms like headaches, eye irritation, coughing, wheezing, and chest pain in the general population, while people with chronic lung conditions faced heightened risks of emergency medical visits and disease flare-ups.
- Health experts recommended N95 or KN95 masks as the most effective protection for those who needed to venture outdoors during poor air quality, while surgical and cloth masks offered minimal protection against harmful smoke particles.
Wildfires in Canada are producing dense smoke over portions of the Northeast and Midwest. Poor air quality in these regions isn’t ideal for anyone, but some people should take extra precautions, experts warn.
If you are pregnant, have a lung condition like asthma or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), heart disease, or chronic kidney disease, even short-term exposure to wildfire smoke can be dangerous.
People with asthma or COPD, for example, are at risk for flare-ups of their disease if they spend time in an area with poor air quality. “They may end up in the emergency department, at an urgent care center, or in their doctor's office more readily,” says Albert Polito, M.D., a pulmonologist and critical care doctor at Mercy Medical Center in Baltimore.
Even if you don’t have a chronic condition that heightens your risk, breathing in wildfire smoke can cause a host of symptoms including headaches, eye irritation, coughing, wheezing, trouble breathing, and chest pain.
The U.S. Air Quality Index (AQI) measures how polluted the air is on a scale from 0 to 301+, with higher numbers indicating greater health risks. An AQI above 100 is considered unhealthy for sensitive groups, and levels above 150 are unhealthy for everyone. The recent wildfires have pushed AQI levels into the hazardous range in some parts of southern Canada and the northern U.S. At the hazardous level, health officials advise everyone to avoid outdoor activity.
While the best way to avoid wildfire smoke is to stay indoors with your windows shut, there are things you can do to protect yourself if you need to go outside, according to Dr. Polito.
Do face masks protect you from wildfire smoke?
“ Masks absolutely can help, but it's all about choosing the right one,” Dr. Polito says.
An N95 mask is the best way to protect yourself from wildfire smoke if you must go outside, according to Dr. Polito. These masks have a precise fit that prevents smoke inhalation, similar to how they can prevent exposure to respiratory illnesses like COVID.
KN95 masks are also a good option for people in areas with poor air quality, says Good Housekeeping Executive Director Lexie Sachs, a fiber scientist who covered masks during COVID and sits on the PPE committee for the American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM). She also has asthma.
“KN95 offer a close fit, and are less expensive and more widely available than N95 masks,” says Sachs. “Plus, there are no N95 masks for kids, but you can find KN95 ones.”
What about surgical or cloth masks? “ They’re not that great at protecting you,” Dr. Polito says. “You're not really achieving that much protection. Is it better than nothing? Yes, but not that much better.” This is because smoke can enter through the gaps of an ill-fitting mask, he explains.
Bottom line
If you have a chronic condition that can be exacerbated by poor air quality, the best way to ride out the smoke cover is to stay indoors. But if you need to leave the house, consider an N95 or KN95 mask to filter out the harmful particles in wildfire smoke.
