If You Can See or Smell the Air, Don’t Exercise in It : Health: Some sports events will go on as planned as risk abates. Those with respiratory problems should stay inside.

Medical experts Friday advised that if you can see or smell the air, don’t run or bicycle in it. And if you already suffer from respiratory problems, stay inside an air-conditioned house.

As Orange County skies cleared and airborne fine ashes from this week’s wildfires continued to dissipate, some outdoor activities resumed, including Friday night high school football games.

However, the American Heart Assn. Heart and Sole Classic 10-kilometer run in Irvine today was canceled because of to poor air quality resulting from the fires.

The forecast for today in Orange County is for good to moderately unhealthful air, with conditions farther away from the fire sites experiencing the most improvement, according to the South Coast Air Quality Management District.

However, it is anticipated that Santa Ana wind conditions will whip up soot that has settled, worsening the air quality, said Diane Masseth-Jones, American Lung Assn. director of environmental health in Santa Ana.

The American Lung Assn. advises “people with severe allergies and asthma to stay indoors with the doors shut and use air conditioning,” she said.

Children and adults should not go outside and exercise when the air contains ash and particulate matter, as was still the case on Friday in many areas of the county, Masseth-Jones said.

Small particulates can cause respiratory irritation to healthy people, and people with chronic lung diseases can suffer more severe problems, she said.

Despite the clearing in the skies, conditions remained serious enough Friday to be of concern.

“We’re just advising people . . . to minimize their activity outdoors and be inside with the air-conditioning on,” said Claudia Keith, South Coast Air Quality Management District spokeswoman.

“It’s mostly common sense,” Keith said. “If you smell smoke and see stuff in the air, it’s probably not a real good thing to be out there breathing that stuff.”

Conditions apparently had improved enough by Friday to diminish worry in some quarters. Several athletic events on Thursday had been canceled or postponed. On Friday, it appeared that most if not all scheduled Orange County high school football games were to be played as scheduled Friday night. In south Irvine, just north of the Laguna Beach fire area, 2,200 children ages 4 to 16 are scheduled to play soccer today.

“I’m a runner myself. I ran five miles yesterday, and it didn’t bother me at all,” said Mike Maquand, American Youth Soccer Organization regional commissioner in south Irvine. “It’s nothing I’m concerned about.”

Maquand allowed, however, that “if a parent feels there’s a problem, they shouldn’t have their child play.”

Dr. Paul Selecky, medical director of the pulmonary department at Hoag Hospital in Newport Beach, said that as a rule, people who have asthma or sensitive airways are “best not doing physical activity outside until this is all dissipated. Avoid smoky areas, and for the time being avoid vigorous activity outside the home.”

Hoag and other hospitals in cities bordering the fire area Friday reported having treated only few people suffering from respiratory problems related to the fire.

“The community is not affected as much, at least form a health standpoint, as we thought it might be,” said Donna Groh, chief operating officer at Irvine Medical Center in Irvine. “We’ve just seen a few, actually. We had anticipated we would see an increased number of people with problems related to the smoke.”

Experts also advised caution on the part of homeowners returning to their burned-out houses to sift through ashes for belongings. At the least, they should wear tight-fitting surgical-type masks to filter the air, medical experts said.

“They really need to be aware if there’s any asbestos,” Keith said.

She said homeowners should “not go into the rubble and dig around. . . . The second-best thing to do is to wet it down. The best thing to do is hire a contractor that is licensed to do that.”