India, Nov. 18 -- With rising pollution in the national Capital, e-commerce sites have started selling portable air purifiers in the form of neckbands, wristbands and wristwatches. These platforms claim to "remove dust, smoke, bacteria, and harmful pollutants to provide cleaner air" and "generate negative ions".

However, various studies and experts suggest that these so-called air purifiers have little to no effect on improving the surrounding air quality and are possibly mere gimmicks.

"We are seeing this growing trend of portable air purifiers, neckbands, and wristbands and we find it concerning and misleading. Unfortunately, many companies are taking advantage of this public health crisis by marketing unproven devices and creating a ...