Member-only story
It's Not Fog, It's Poison
From London to pakpattan, Delhi to Los Angeles - why the air you think is foggy is actually hurting your lungs, and what you can do about it today.
I still remember that morning.
I opened my window to get some fresh air. And there was no fresh air. Just grey. Thick grey. I could not see the house in front of mine.
My eyes started burning within five minutes. My throat felt like I had swallowed sand. My mom looked outside and said, "Look, so much fog today. Winter is here."
But I knew something was off. Fog doesn’t burn your eyes. Fog doesn’t make you cough. Fog doesn’t smell like burnt plastic.
That was not fog. That was smog. And I think most of us are living in it and calling it by the wrong name.
So, What Is The Real Difference?
Let me keep it simple because I also used to get confused.
Fog is just water. When the night is cold and the air is wet, tiny drops of water float in the air. It looks white. It feels a little wet on your face. And by 10 or 11 in the morning, when the sun comes out, it is gone. That is fog. It is natural. It is harmless.
Smog is something else.
Smog is smoke + fog. It is fog mixed with everything we throw into the air. Car smoke. Factory smoke. Smoke from burning garbage. Smoke from burning crops. Smoke from brick kilns.
It does not look white. It…
