🌫️ Guide
Air quality and how you feel: smog, pollen and your head
A rough day, a heavy head, no energy — and the sky grey and "heavy." It's not always coincidence. Air quality affects how you feel more than you'd think.
What poor air quality does
- Headaches — high levels of particulates (PM2.5/PM10) and ozone are linked to headaches and migraine.
- Fatigue and "fog" — pollution hampers oxygenation and leaves some people feeling sluggish.
- Airways and allergy — smog worsens symptoms for allergy and asthma sufferers, and often coincides with high pollen.
- Mood — studies link worse air quality to worse mood, though the relationship is complex.
Smog and pollen — a frequent duo
On warm, high-pressure days the two can coincide: high pollen and poor air ventilation. Then a "cotton-wool head" isn't one cause but an overlap. That's why it's worth watching both indicators at once.
How to check if it's a factor for you
Log how you feel and let air quality and pollen be added automatically. After a few weeks you'll see whether your worse days line up with high pollution — or it's coincidence. If they do: on smoggy days ease off hard outdoor exercise, ventilate when the air is better, and consider an air purifier.
This article is for information only and does not replace medical advice.
Lunaria — the health diary that listens
Note how you feel in a sentence, and Lunaria connects it with weather, pollen and the moon — and reveals patterns.