Morning Air is the Worst Time for Exercise in Jakarta: Watch Dog

TheIndonesia.id - The Indonesian Nafas Institute assesses that the morning air has high pollution compared to certain hours in Jakarta, Bogor, Depok, Tangerang, and Bekasi. That is so the midday air is best for exercising outdoors.

"Air pollution is highest in the morning, related to the atmosphere as well. This is something that happens in all urban cities, not only in Jakarta," said Nafas Indonesia Co-founder Piotr Jakubowski when speaking at the "journalist class" event held by the Air Talk Community at Artotel Thamrin Hotel, Central Jakarta, Tuesday, July 19, 2022.

Air pollution is a threat to the health of residents of Jakarta, Bogor, Depok, Tangerang, and Bekasi (Jabodetabek). But not only a few misunderstand this air quality.

The results of Nafas pioneer research throughout 2022, as many as 75 percent of Jabodetabek residents consider the morning air to be better than other times. While based on Breath data in June 2022, PM2.5 pollution is highest in the morning and only improves from 09.00 am to 16.00 WIB.

Jakubowski explained that this misperception made the public's interest in exercising in the morning greater. "Misperceptions are formed because they think the air feels cool, traffic conditions are light, and there is minimal pollution," he said.

According to Nafas data, the ideal time to exercise is from 14:00 to 17:00 Western Indonesia Time because the high pollution is in the morning and evening. Furthermore, Jakubowski said that air quality is not only influenced by the number of vehicles passing by, but also due to many factors.

When the community restriction was implemented in Jakarta, the air quality in the city was still at an unhealthy level even though people's mobility had decreased. According to Jakubowski, the air quality in Jakarta is also affected by emission pollution from various other areas carried by the wind.

"Winds carrying PM2.5 from emission sources can move to other locations, causing a potential increase," he said.

In addition, the surface layer wind pattern shows the movement of air masses from the east and northeast towards Jakarta and has an impact on the accumulation of PM2.5 concentrations in this region.

Previously, according to IQ Air, Jakarta's air quality was categorized as unhealthy because the Particulate Matter (PM) 2.5 was at 111.5 micrograms per cubic meter or 22.3 times on Monday morning, July 18. PM 2.5 refers to very small air pollutants, around 2.5 microns (micrometers). The diameter of these particles is smaller than the diameter of a human hair and can increase due to heat, fire, and environmental pollution. When inhaled, these airborne particles can be harmful to the body, especially the lungs and heart.