Try This – How to Protect Your Body and Brain from Toxic Air

I’m pretty obsessed with air quality, and after the incredibly tragic LA fires, I’ve become even more vigilant. 

The scale of air pollution’s impact is downright alarming. According to the World Health Organization, air pollution kills about seven million people worldwide every year. In fact, some experts now call it the single-largest external threat to human health, even deadlier than smoking. 

My city, Los Angeles, consistently ranks among the most polluted US cities for ozone and fine particles. And around the world, it’s even worse. New Delhi’s air gets so bad that on the worst days, spending 24 hours there is like smoking 49 cigarettes!

But even if you don’t live in a smoggy city, you need to pay attention to indoor air quality. 

In a recent podcast episode with Dr. Elroy Vojdani (who I also happen to be seeing to optimize my health), we explored how pollution isn’t just about lungs and asthma; it might be silently driving autoimmune issues from rheumatoid arthritis to multiple sclerosis and more. 

Shocking but true: nearly all of us are breathing unhealthy air daily, and it’s taking a serious toll on our bodies. The good news? Once you’re aware, there are concrete steps you can take to protect yourself. 

In this newsletter, we’re going to be covering: 

• Targeted supplements that can help the body detoxify if you’re in a poor air quality area. 

• Two devices I use personally (one to track air quality and the device I use to purify my air). 

• Simple lifestyle tips to help our bodies become more resilient in the face of poor air. 

Let’s get into it… 

3 Things You Need to Know About Air Quality

1. Poor Air Affects More Than Your Lungs

We often think of smog and assume it “only” hurts our breathing. Wrong. 

Dr. Vojdani highlighted that air pollution affects every system. Research links long-term pollution exposure to higher rates of autoimmune diseases (like rheumatoid arthritis, lupus, and Crohn’s). It doesn’t stop there—inhaled pollutants trigger inflammation that can contribute to neurodegenerative diseases (yes, dirty air has been correlated with increased dementia risk) and even skin problems (studies tie pollution to eczema, psoriasis flare-ups, and accelerated skin aging).

I experienced this firsthand when I moved into my new podcast studio and bought new furniture and a new rug. Within hours of closing the windows, my air quality monitor (I use an Awair device, no affiliation with them) showed VOC (volatile organic compound) levels spiking into the “red” zone. That new-furniture smell wasn’t just a pleasant odor; it was a cloud of chemicals. I actually started to get a slightly scratchy throat and headache after long recording sessions. Opening the windows or running an air purifier made a noticeable difference. It was a vivid lesson: a brand-new, clean-looking room can hide polluted air. Now, I always ventilate new purchases (letting rugs and furniture off-gas in the garage) and run a filter in the studio.

2. Indoor Air Can Be 100x Worse

You’ve probably heard me say before that the air inside your home or office could be more polluted than the air outside. In fact, indoor air quality is commonly 2–5 times worse than outdoor air, and in some cases up to 100–500 times more toxic. 

How is that possible? Hidden toxin sources. Modern buildings seal in a “chemical soup” emitted by everyday items. Think of all the products in a typical home: cleaning sprays, air fresheners, shampoos, perfumes, paints, new furniture and carpets—even cooking can release fumes.

For weeks, I kept getting mild headaches in the evenings and couldn’t figure out why. Then I noticed it seemed to happen after my wife used a specific shampoo and conditioner and then applied heat to her hair. We experimented with her switching to a better alternative that was unscented, and sure enough, my headaches disappeared. Just as importantly, I checked my air monitor out of curiosity and saw that total VOC levels in our bedroom/bathroom area dropped significantly after the switch. It was a small change, but it made a huge difference.

3. Polluted Air = Foggy Brain

Breathing dirty air doesn’t only damage health long-term; it can mess with your mind and performance right away. Dr. Vojdani shared a jaw-dropping study of Major League Baseball umpires that really brings this home. Researchers found that on days with higher air pollution, umpires made significantly more mistakes calling balls and strikes. In fact, a big spike in fine particles or carbon monoxide led to an average of 1.5 extra incorrect calls per game. If smoggy air can make an MLB umpire miss a fastball, what is it doing to our kids in school? Or our concentration at work? 

It should not come as a shocker that air pollution has a major role in the way our brains function and can even lead to cognitive decline. 

Try This: Clean Up Your Air and Support Your Body

You don’t have to just accept breathing bad air. Here are some practical steps you can take right now to improve air quality and protect your body. 

• Purify Your Indoor Air: Invest in a high-quality HEPA air purifier for your home, or at least for your bedroom (where you spend ~8 hours a night). Run it regularly—you’ll be surprised how much it can reduce dust and particulate levels. This is my favorite one that I’ve been using for years. (They do sponsor my podcast, but I honestly believe they are the best.) 

• Ventilate, Ventilate, Ventilate: Open your windows when the outdoor air is clear. Ventilation brings in fresh air and dilutes indoor toxin buildup. Even 5–10 minutes can make a difference, especially after activities like cooking, painting, or cleaning.

• Track Your Air Quality: Consider getting an indoor air quality monitor. Use it to experiment: see how cooking without a fan affects PM2.5 (fine particles in the air with a diameter less than 2.5 micrometers), or how a scented candle raises VOCs. Identifying your home’s pollution hot spots allows you to take targeted action. Also, it’s definitely an investment to buy one of these, but I fully believe it’s worth it. It helped me identify some toxic areas in my own life, including my new car and the office with new furniture, and take steps to properly ventilate them both. 

• Eliminate Hidden Culprits: Do a quick audit of the products in your home that might be polluting your air. Ditch artificially scented products, opt for low-VOC paints, and store solvents and cleaners in well-ventilated areas.

• Sweat Out the Bad Stuff: Get sweaty! Whether through exercise or a sauna, sweating is one of the most effective ways to detox environmental pollutants from your body.

• Pile Your Plate with Cruciferous Veggies: Foods like broccoli, cauliflower, Brussels sprouts, and kale contain compounds that actually help your body neutralize and flush out toxins.

• Consider Supplements: In our conversation, Dr. Vojdani shared several evidence-based supplements that can help the body combat the effects of air pollution. Here are a few he recommends:

• Sulforaphane (Broccoli Sprout Extract): This powerful compound helps activate detox pathways in the liver and supports the body's ability to remove environmental toxins.

• Glutathione: One of the body's master antioxidants, glutathione plays a key role in neutralizing pollutants and reducing oxidative stress caused by air pollution.

• Vitamin C: A well-known antioxidant that helps counteract the damaging effects of pollution, particularly for the lungs and skin.

• Omega-3 Fatty Acids: Found in fish oil, omega-3s help reduce inflammation and support brain health, which can be affected by long-term air pollution exposure.

• N-acetylcysteine (NAC): This precursor to glutathione helps the body maintain its antioxidant defenses and supports respiratory health.

Now that you know how air quality impacts your health, take one or two of these steps to clean up your air. You might feel the improvements: fewer headaches, better skin, less brain fog, or simply the peace of mind that you’re doing something proactive for your health.

But don’t stop there. Spread the word about the impact of air quality. Encourage others to measure their indoor air or swap out a chemical-laden product for a greener alternative. The more awareness we create, the better we can protect ourselves and future generations.

Here’s to your health, 

Dhru Purohit