Winter raises pneumonia risk; protect your lungs with these lifestyle changes

Winter season brings with it a pleasant nip in the air but could trigger onset of certain illnesses in vulnerable population.

As the mercury drops, a rise in pneumonia cases is reported and people who have existing lung issues like COPD, asthma, low immunity or chronic diseases such as diabetes or blood pressure are doubly at risk and must exercise caution around this time of the year.

Pneumonia can cause inflammation in the air sacs of one or both lungs and can cause serious complications in those with compromised immune system, elderly or children. The disease can be caused by bacteria, viruses, or fungi, and winter season particularly can increase risk of the disease as people tend to stay indoors allowing easy transmission of the germs from one person to the other. To make sure, you can avoid this dreaded disease, it’s important to introduce some lifestyle changes to fight it.

“The Mukhabarat in Egypt will get your parents. Does your father like his fingernails? They’ll take them out one by one,” he says, while the vendor repeatedly asks him to leave, stating he doesn’t speak English.

Seldowitz retorts, “Tell me why I should go? I’m standing here. I’m an American. It’s a free country. It’s not like Egypt,” and criticizes the vendor for not speaking English and accuses him of working in the US without a permit or visa.

Previously, Seldowitz held significant roles in the US government, including acting director for the National Security Council South Asia Directorate during the Obama administration and deputy director/senior political officer in the State Department’s Office of Israel and Palestinian Affairs from 1999 to 2003. As of November 2022, he was appointed as foreign affairs chair at Gotham Government Relations.

Following the incident, Gotham Government Relations took to Twitter to announce the termination of their relationship with Seldowitz.

“Gotham Government Relations has ended all affiliation with Stuart Seldowitz, an individual who hasn’t contributed to our work in years. The video of his actions is vile, racist, and beneath the dignity of the standards we practice at our firm,” the firm stated in a tweet, removing his page from their website.

A spokesperson for the New York Police Department told VICE News that they are aware of the incident and are currently monitoring the situation.