‘That will impact people’s mental health’: Interior Health explains how Kamloops’ wildfire smoke is linked to physical, mental risks

“Coughing, irritation of the throat, irritation of the eyes, wheezing.” says Dr. Silvina Mema, the deputy chief medical health officer for Interior Health who spoke with the CFJC Today team Friday (August 7).

“Those are the acute impact. Now, there is also chronic impact. Somebody who is exposed, to wildfire smoke or any type of smoke for prolonged periods of time, they can develop, you know, other types of conditions”

Those risks are even greater for people with underlying medical conditions, alongside pregnant people and children.

Beyond it’s physical element? The smoke continues to make impact.

“We don’t want people to be spending, you know, large amounts of time outside, in these smoky conditions. So that will impact people’s mental health.”

That disruption in daily life is already playing out across the region with events such as Dragon Boat Racing, being smoked-out and cancelled. Dr. Mema says it’s normal for anxiety or the blues to follow.

“We know that’s a very real, issue. People are experiencing anxiety. There are people that have grown up in seeing the land and, the fields and those are burning…and, and that creates a lot of anxiety… also anxiety about the future, what’s the future going to look like.” added Dr. Mema

With the smoke expected to remain a concern, Mema says people can help limit that stress by staying informed, connected and having a plan if conditions worsen. Which also means knowing when to move exercise indoors, rather than pushing through the poor air quality outdoors.

“Exercise is very good for mental health. Obviously, we want people to keep exercising…but find alternative places, indoor places where the air quality air is filtered….if you absolutely have to be outside… and you want to protect yourself, then a well-fitted N95 mask”

For now, the smoke is part of everyone’s daily life, but so is the choice to protect yourself from it.

That means knowing when to stay inside, when to change your routine and when to check in with the people around you.

by Jeremy Russo

‘That will impact people’s mental health’: Interior Health explains how Kamloops’ wildfire smoke is linked to physical, mental risks

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