Illustration: Chris Gash for Newsweek

By Joan Raymond

Joe Minott says he sometimes feels like a bit player in a remake of the B-movie classic “Godzilla vs. the Smog Monster.” On hot, sunny days, when a blanket of smog—a noxious mix of ground-level ozone and other pollutants—darkens the skyline near his Philadelphia home, Minott is loath to venture out. He suffers from an autoimmune disorder called sarcoidosis that affects his lungs. And when pollution is high, his ability to breathe is laid low. “No one wants to be stuck inside because it hurts to breathe the air outside,” says Minott, 53, executive director of the Clean Air Council, a Philadelphia-based environmental group. “We have to do a better job of cleaning up the air.”

Minott may soon be breathing a little bit easier. In March, the Environmental Protection Agency lowered the limit for the acceptable concentrations of ground-level ozone from 84 to 75 parts per billion. That’s still higher than the level of 60 to 70 parts per billion recommended by the EPA’s independent scientific advisory panel. “Based on the science and how best to protect health, we wanted a lower standard, period,” says Janice E. Nolen, assistant vice president of national policy and advocacy for the American Lung Association. “But this is a small step in the right direction.”

When it comes to health, ground-level ozone is a major threat. “The thing about ozone is that once you breathe it in, you can feel something is wrong almost right away,” says Dr. Herbert Wiedemann, chairman of the Respiratory Institute at the Cleveland Clinic. The gas is formed when sunlight and heat cause a chemical reaction between volatile organic compounds (VOCs), which are emitted as gases from such items as dry-cleaned clothing, paints, aerosols and nitrogen oxide—pollutants that come mostly from coal-powered industrial plants and motor vehicles. Epidemiologic studies show that long-term exposure causes premature aging of the lungs and decreases in lung capacity and function. Though children, the elderly and those with heart disease or respiratory problems like asthma and emphysema are at particular risk, about 20 percent of otherwise healthy adults are unusually sensitive to ozone’s effects, experiencing symptoms like coughing, wheezing and pain when they breathe deeply in highly polluted areas.

Short of fleeing civilization, there are a number of things you can do to protect yourself and improve air quality, both outdoors and inside your home. The first step: check the Air Quality Index (airnow.gov). The site gives daily readings by state and region for ozone levels and particulate matter (a mix of soot and other pollutants). To see specific pollutants for your state or to drill down to a specific county, go to the interactive map at epa.gov/ air/data/geosel.html. See if your state and county get passing grades for ozone levels and particle pollution at the American Lung Association State of the Air: 2007 report (lungaction.org/reports/stateofthe air2007.html). For more information about outdoor air quality, go to the National Library of Medicine (sis.nlm.nih.gov/enviro/ outdoorairpollution.html). For more tips on how to protect yourself on high-ozone days (and expect more ozone alerts due to the EPA’s new standards) check out lungusa.org, epa.gov and cleanair.org.

When driving, avoid jack-rabbit starts and long idling. Choose air-friendly alternatives for home improvement, such as using a rake instead of a gas-powered leaf blower, trading in your gas-guzzling lawnmower for a manual model or planting shrubs to reduce the size of your yard. For more tips, go to sparetheair.com.

Don’t forget about indoor air quality, since it can be worse than outdoor air. First, don’t allow smoking in your home. VOCs can be a big problem indoors. Cut down on VOCs by cleaning up dust (which is a VOC magnet) and using low-VOC or water-based paints, nonaerosol pumps and sprays, and eco-friendly cleaning products. Simple strategies like keeping air conditioners and furnaces maintained; vacuuming rather than sweeping; running ceiling and attic fans, and opening windows to improve circulation and ventilation can help, too. Keep humidity in check to prevent mold growth. For more ideas, go to airqualitytips.com and healthhouse.org. Make sure you have a working carbon-monoxide detector (see lungdiseases.about.com/od/buyersguides/tp/ top_ codetectors.htm for a buyer’s guide). And consider radon testing (see epa.gov/ radon/pubs/citguide.html for more info).

The best advice: “Get off the couch, get involved and let officials know you want cleaner air,” says Minott. For ideas, check out cleanair-coolplanet.org/action or ww2.earthday.net. That way we can all breathe easier.