Breathing is underrated. It helps you calm down and focus. It can also improve your posture, immune response, stamina, and athletic performance. It even works as an immediate mood booster.

Go ahead—try it. Take a deep breath. In… and out…

I bet you feel a little better now than you did before. That’s the power of breathing!

Oh yeah, and it keeps you alive.

Yes, we all need to respirate to live—about 12 to 20 times per minute, to be exact. Ideally, each breath we inhale should be free of contaminants and pollutants. But that’s not always possible, especially for anyone who works in a construction site, a manufacturing facility, or another environment where particulate matter fills the air. Which is why respiratory protection equipment and standards exist.

Do you know your respiratory protection basics? Are you aware of which jobs require respirators, what equipment is necessary in different contexts, and how to ensure respirators fit? Do you know what to do when someone shows signs of respiratory distress? Find out by taking KPA’s Respiratory Protection Pop Quiz.

Each quiz question below is adapted from material in our training resources. See if you can answer these real safety and compliance questions correctly.

How’d you do? Did you breeze through or choke? You can breathe easy—we won’t be grading you on this. But if your respiratory knowledge is little more than hot air, contact us. This is one of those safety topics you really need to get right the first time.

For more workplace safety resources, check out the KPA Insights library.