These can cause respiratory diseases, aggravate cardiac illness and asthma and irritate sensory organs. Air pollution is believed to cause 2,000 premature deaths a year in Hong Kong. While controls on vehicle emissions have led to a recent decrease in lead and sulfur-dioxide pollution, Hodgkiss thinks there is a limit to what can be done to control pollution. China is going through enormous industrial expansion. There's not much we can do about that.
Most medical opinion says no.
If you are healthy, you really don't need it. According to him, people with lung problems should not breathe pure oxygen, even for a short while. It could irritate their lungs, he says. Some doctors believe that the apparent benefits of oxygen bars are due to the naturally calming effect of deep breathing in a clean and smoke-free environment, and not to the oxygen itself. The U.S. Food and Drugs Administration has approved oxygen treatment for specific problems, including migraine and carbon-monoxide poisoning.