The Health Benefits of Maintaining Your Air Quality at Home
You can perform all of the exercises you can handle, eat all of the right foods, and drink plenty of water. However, can you really stay healthy if the air you breathe is toxic?
While it seems simple, it isn’t stated much. Believe it or not, 99% of the world breathes in toxic air, based on quality limits set by the World Health Organization (WHO).
Unfortunately, you can’t do much about the air outside, but you can start with your own home. Let’s talk about the importance of air quality at home and how you can improve yours!
Why Is Air Quality So Important?
The quality of the air you breathe is such an important aspect of your health. Here are just a few examples of why.
Better Sleep
Like air quality, sleep is another fundamental aspect of human life and health. A lack of quality sleep over time will raise the risk of many diseases and disorders, ranging from heart disease to stroke or to obesity and dementia.
Studies show time and time again that air quality has a direct effect on sleep. Most notably, poor air quality can cause breathing disorders during sleep, which is roughly a third of the time we spend breathing.
Removing Pollutants and Allergens
Of course, poor air quality in the home will carry more pollutants and allergens. While allergens may irritate you temporarily, many pollutants can cause long-term health damage. These are considered “silent killers,” as they often go undetected.
Lower Risk of Disease
Certain air pollutants will increase your risk of cancer, dementia, and dozens of other serious health conditions. Air quality can even lead to diabetes, obesity, and so much more. Poor home air quality is responsible for 3.2 million premature deaths each year.
Improved Cognition
That’s right, air quality has a direct impact on brain performance. The more oxygen and the less pollution you can take in will have a direct impact on your ability to focus, reason, and solve problems. If you work from home or need to stay on top of your chores and family life, then this can really help!
Believe it or not, the brain benefits don’t stop there. Air quality can increase happiness by reducing the effects that lead to conditions like depression.
Keep in mind, this is especially true for the developing brain. If you have young children at home, poor air quality could have lasting effects on their cognition, unfortunately.
How to Improve Your Air Quality at Home
Now that you see how serious home air quality is, you’re probably ready to improve yours. Here are some steps you can take today that can make a world of difference!
Use an Air Quality Monitor
Air quality monitors are quite inexpensive, but they can tell you a lot. Make sure you get one that covers all of the pollutants or irritants that most concern you. These may include specific allergens, CO levels, and more.
From there, you’ll have a measurable way to determine the effectiveness of your future strategies.
Consider Purchasing an Air Purifier
Air purifiers are not all created equally. Some are more efficient than others, and it’s important to buy one that isn’t (effectively) a scam.
Moreover, the best air purifiers use HEPA-grade filters, which you can find in hospitals. These are the best for trapping harmful pathogens and irritants as small as 0.3 microns. Ones that use UV lamps to destroy their DNA are even more effective!
Deep Cleaning
One of the best things you can do to improve your home’s air quality is to deep clean everything in your home. No matter how often you clean the basics, there will always be those hard-to-reach or forgotten areas. Unfortunately, they make their way into the air that you, your family, your pets, and your guests breathe in.
Using the right cleaning solutions and techniques, you can dramatically reduce dust, dander, and pollutants from entering the air. If you aren’t up to this task yourself, don’t worry!
You can always hire deep cleaning services to help you clean your home and get rid of irritants in the air. As always, stopping these problems at the source will yield the best results.
Upgrade Old Systems
Do you have a gas stove? How about an oil furnace and heater? Maybe you have air ducts or an HVAC system from the ’70s?
Regardless, the more that you can upgrade to modern systems, the better. Pollution that comes from burning fossil fuels can cause serious health issues, especially in the confined space of your home.
Conversely, with newer systems like heat pumps and updated (and well-maintained) ventilation, you can dramatically improve your home’s air quality!
Also, you may have seen the EPA’s controversial findings on gas stoves, but they are true. Burning gasoline in your home’s air and standing right above the flame while you cook can lead to serious health concerns.
Fortunately, electric and induction burners have come a long way in recent years, and you can even receive a federal tax rebate of up to $840 for upgrading!
Breathe Easier Today
Now that you know the health benefits and how to improve your air quality at home, why wait? You can’t put off something so important for too long, especially when we spend every second of our lives breathing. Still, with the right services, you won’t have to worry.
Stay up to date with our latest home cleaning tips, and don’t hesitate to contact us with any questions or to help improve your home’s air quality today!
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