Originally Posted by sbhikes
Do you thinking cycling in traffic harms your lungs? It seems sometimes that I have to breathe a lot more exhaust, especially diesel exhaust which I find extremely irritating. It seems like I cough a lot in the mornings, too. How about you? Do you think cycling is harming your lungs at all?
Yes. What I love is drivers who pass me smoothly without excess acceleration, it's not necessary to wait until passing and then floor it, dumping all their pulverized gunk into my lungs. Furthermore, ground-level ozone is a far more dangerous health hazard than anyone wants to admit. Look at the way we ban smokers from puffing in public places while the ozone is already so bad it really doesn't matter much.
It really does make a difference to take an out-of-the-way route when traffic is bad.
I'm really not taking sides out of favoritism, smog and car exhaust have been shown to be harmful.
But I have to add that giving up cycling would not be good for my health, and that I'd be exposed to smog anyway. I just do what I can to intelligently minimize my exposure to it. Like it or not, a separated bike path can sometimes make a difference if it's not next to the road, but so can alternate routes, perhaps even more so. That's why I like the shaded neighborhoods in summer.