Respiratory cases spike amid Beijing smog

Hospitals here in Beijing are taking in more respiratory patients as smog has kept its grip on the city in the past few days. Meanwhile, face masks have suddenly become the hottest-selling item in convenience & drug stores across the city.

It takes a lot to rattle residents of a city as smoggy as Beijing. But after consecutive days of off-the-charts pollution readings, the smog-resistant Beijingers are giving in. The city is seeing a major spike in pollution-related illnesses.

Lu Yong, MD of Beijing Chaoyang Hospital, said,"We've seen an increase of 30 percent in such patients."

The smog is taking a particular toll on the capital's youngest residents. According to the Beijing Children's hospital, the number of children being treated for respiratory ailments hit a five year high in the past week, with more than 7000 patients a day. An average of 800 children have been treated with nebulizers daily.

Meanwhile, citizens in Beijing are taking steps to protect themselves. Online shopping giants Taobao and Tmall reported to have sold 500,000 face masks over the weekend, with 140,000 purchased by Beijing residents alone.

"The air has been so bad these days. Face masks are a must in this condition and I also bought one designed for children."

And the ones designed to block out PM2.5s are selling particularly fast.

Gu Yunkun, drugstore employee, said,"The masks sold out in just 2 days, so we had to put in an emergency order last night."

For those willing to shell out even bigger bucks for a breath of fresh air, air purifiers are on top of the shopping list.

"Since the smoggy air came, sales of air purifiers here have more than doubled."

But the sale of such items may decrease soon, as a cold front is predicted to move through the city, probably clearing out the lingering haze.