While most people recognize the dangers posed by outdoor environmental pollutants, awareness of the many factors that compromise indoor air quality are not as well-known. Because we spend so much of our time inside an average of ninety percent – everyone can benefit from the understanding of how to purify and maintain healthy air in the home and office.
Stove
Gas-burning stoves can produce harmful chemicals like carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides and fine particle pollution, ventilation from these features to an area that is outside of your home is an imperative.The EPA has determined that cooking a single meal on a gas stove can create levels of nitrogen dioxide that are unsafe for anyone to breathe, so you should always ventilate your kitchen when cooking if you rely on one of these appliances.
Avoid wood-burning fireplaces
Like tobacco smoke, wood smoke contains fine and ultrafine particles as well as carbon monoxide, formaldehyde and sulfur dioxide. Wood smoke also contains nitrogen oxides that can cause scarring in lung tissue, and contains carcinogenic chemicals such as benzene and dioxin.
Use natural cleaners
There are some natural products that people don’t realize make very effective cleaners. Baking soda, white vinegar, hydrogen peroxide and club soda are all exceptionally useful for housecleaning, inexpensive and they can often work much better than the heavily-fragranced formulas that you buy at the store.
