There’s no disputing it — clean air is vital for sustaining life and preserving the Earth for future generations.
But while numerous efforts have been made to raise awareness about the dangers of outdoor air pollution on both people and the environment, much less focus is being paid on indoor air quality (IAQ).
Yet, with people spending more and more time inside, being conscious about the air we breathe indoors is just as important.
Poor air leads to poor health
Polluted outside air can trigger a multitude of health complications, and the same is true for air indoors.
In fact, recent studies have revealed that the air in interior spaces can be as much as five times more polluted than exterior air. This means, if left unchecked, your home can make you really unhealthy!
Asthma, a respiratory condition that affects more than 262 million people worldwide, is one such risk. Though various things can trigger asthma, recent research reveals poor IAQ can worsen the condition and even increase the likelihood of death.
One other “disease” that’s seen an increase since folks started spending more time indoors is Sick Building Syndrome (SBS).
For example, do you have a perpetually runny nose? Have you noticed how your headaches increase after you spend a few hours in a certain enclosed space?
Well, SBS is believed to be triggered by IAQ and can have damaging long-term effects if not addressed.
But what’s affecting indoor air quality, anyway?
Invisible agents
The truth is there are numerous sources of pollution inside our homes and offices.
This can range from gasses emitted while cooking to respirable particulates like aerosols from household cleaning products, dust, fibres and pet dander.
Additionally, if you regularly leave windows and doors open, your home and office could be infiltrated by contaminants from the outside. Yes, you read that right – it’s damned if you do, damned if you don’t!
Of course, one of the biggest reasons for bad air in homes and buildings is poor ventilation.
Many homes these days are designed to be “airtight” to improve energy efficiency. But while this is great for sustainability, not all spaces are properly ventilated — leading to all the bad vibes being trapped inside.
So, what can we do about it?
Simple steps to breathe better
The good news is that it’s not too difficult to ensure you and your loved ones are breathing better air indoors. All you need to do is “clean” the air in your homes.
According to scientists, including the good people at the United States Environmental Protection Agency, the most effective ways to do this are by reducing or removing sources of pollution from within your home and ventilating enclosed spaces with clean air.
But what can truly help improve the situation over the long term is a good air filtration system.
The options in terms of air purifying systems are numerous. But compact, portable air purifiers are especially recommended over a complex central filtering system for the simple reason that the former is convenient and easy to use.
Essentially, you’d want to invest in an air purifier with a multi-step filtration system like the HomePure Zayn, that can comprehensively cut most of the harmful stuff out.
Most air purifiers do a good job of eliminating large particulates like dust and pet dander. But few are equipped to deal with airborne particulates as small as 0.1 microns, as well as harmful gases and odours.
You’d also want to ensure that the filtration system of your choice can cover a large enough indoor area for maximum effect.
Most purifiers, however, are only capable of cleaning the air in small spaces. Not HomePure Zayn. It’s one of the only purifiers in the market that can cover a 36 square metre area.
So, when you’re looking for the ideal solution to ensuring that the air that you breathe is, well, breathable, remember to look at these various factors before you decide on your next course of action.
