Photo/Illutration The Japan Meteorological Agency’s yellow sand arrival forecast for 9 p.m. on April 12 (Captured from the Japan Meteorological Agency’s website)

Health experts warned about the hazards of inhaling yellow sand particles that continued to spread across wide areas of Japan on April 12.

They advised people, especially those with respiratory conditions, to minimize their outdoor activities, wear masks that cover the nose, and apply moisturizer and sunscreen to exposed skin.

Emergency calls for heart attacks and cerebral infarctions increase on the day after yellow sand arrives from China, according to Kazunari Onishi, associate professor of environmental epidemiology at St. Luke’s International University, who specializes in health damage from yellow sand.

Yellow sand inhalation causes symptoms similar to those from pollen allergies, such as sore throats, itchy skin and excess phlegm.

Yellow sand can worsen pollen allergies by damaging the mucous membranes in the nose. It can also exacerbate symptoms among people with underlying conditions, such as asthma, according to studies.

People with atopic dermatitis or metal allergies are especially prone to worsened symptoms, Onishi said.

“The necessary preventive measures are almost the same as for pollen allergies,” he said.

He also recommends that people remove their clothes and take a shower immediately after returning home.

Laundry should be dried indoors as much as possible, he said. Shaking out clothes that have dried outside will not completely remove the fine dust particles.

“It’s important to check the yellow sand forecast from the Japan Meteorological Agency and reduce the time spent exposed to yellow sand as much as possible,” Onishi said.

The yellow sand season typically lasts until around May.

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