Air Quality Flag Procedures

The Air Quality Flag procedures have been developed to protect children’s health on poor air quality days. Children may look like miniature adults, but they’re not. Air pollution is especially dangerous to them because their lungs are growing and because they are so active.

Just like the arms and legs, the largest portion of a child’s lungs will grow long after he or she is born. Eighty percent of their tiny air sacs develop after birth. Those sacs, called the alveoli, are where the life-sustaining transfer of oxygen to the blood takes place. The lungs and their alveoli aren’t fully grown until children become adults. In addition, the body’s defenses that help adults fight off infections are still developing in young bodies. Children have more respiratory infections than adults, which also seems to increase their susceptibility to air pollution.

Furthermore, children don’t behave like adults, which also affects their vulnerability. They are outside for longer periods and are usually more active when outdoors. Consequently, they inhale more polluted outdoor air than adults typically do. Focusing on Children

This procedure is currently being used in the Roosevelt District to insure that teachers and other staff take appropriate precautions to protect the health of their children. A similar procedure is also in use in the San Joaquin Valley Schools that have implemented a similar Air Quality Flag Program.

When air quality is poor keeping the children indoors is very important to protect the children’s health and allow their lungs to develop normally.