How Indoor Air Pollution May Be A Health-Risk For You & Your Family

Indoor air pollutants are not easy to deal with, but we can begin our rundown of household toxics with them, because they pose the greatest hazards to health. If your home contains one of these pollutants, changing anything else won't make much difference, because these override everything both in their degree of harm and their quantity of exposure.

Indoor air pollution has become a problem in the past two decades because of the combination of sealing up our homes for energy efficiency without appropriate air-exchange equipment and filling them with more and more toxic products. Particle-board furniture and cabinets, cleaning products, pesticides, plastics and synthetic fibers used in furnishing and construction, carpeting, drapes, scented items, gas appliances and heaters, and many other common items made from petrochemicals all contribute to an increase in indoor air pollution.

The level of toxic pollutants inside many houses is often higher than that of the air outside, sometimes even higher than the maximum allowable outdoor standards. At present, many government agencies and private firms are studying indoor air pollution, its effects, and what to do about it.

In one study in New Jersey, researchers outfitted 350 people with special test monitors that would continuously sample the surrounding air and measure their exposure to 20 separate organic chemicals. At the same time, they also monitored 100 backyards for outdoor levels of pollutant. When they looked at the test data, they found that people living farther away from polluting industries did not show any less personal exposure than people who lived closer.

The most important factor was indoor air pollution. In some homes, pollutant levels were 100 times higher than outdoors. This study also pointed out another important fact: What we breathe travels throughout our bodies. Samples showed residues of gasoline on the breath of some people hours after they had filled their gas tanks, while a short visit to the dry cleaner resulted in tetrachloroethylene on the breath. Even taking a hot shower elevated breath levels of chloroform, which is released in the stream of chlorinated water.

Often indoor air problems go undetected by those exposed because of a phenomenon known as "olfactory fatigue" where you noticed a strong odor when you first walked into a room, but then a few minutes later, you completely forgot about it and, in fact, couldn't smell it at all. A few sniffs of the same smell, and the ability of your nose to perceive odor is dulled. Gas leaks, for example, frequently go undetected until someone else visits the house and smells gas upon entering. Your nose is the first tool you can use to identify indoor pollutants.

To get a fresh sniff of your house, spend the day outdoors in the cleanest air you can to "cleanse" the olfactory sense in your nose. Then come home and sniff the minute you open the door. Keeping windows closed while you're away will help intensify the smells. If there are odors present, you should be able to smell them in the first few sniffs, and then less and less as you continue to breathe.

If you need another round of sniffs, go back outside and breathe some "clean" air, then go inside again and notice what you smell in the first few sniffs. If you don't notice any odors, have a friend come over and sniff. After breathing the same odors day in and day out, it may take some time to restore your sense of smell.

Once you determine there is a problem, the air quality in your home can be professionally tested, if necessary, and you can take steps to remove sources of pollution. The most effective way to reduce indoor air pollution is to eliminate pollutants at their source. The more of them you replace with nontoxic products, the cleaner and safer the air inside your home will be. In particular, try to remove:

1. scented beauty and hygiene products
2. cleaning products made from synthetic chemicals
3. pesticides
4. plastics, synthetic fibers and fabrics
5. office supplies with volatile ingredients
6. household furnishings made from synthetic materials
7. gas appliances and heaters
8. building materials made from formaldehyde

A second option is to increase ventilation. Keep your windows open as much as the weather allows and, even better, invest in a window fan. If you need more ventilation but don't want to lose heat, consider an air-to-air heat exchanger

Houseplants can also help clean the air. Tests done by NASA have shown that common houseplants remove pollutants as they go through their natural process of photosynthesis - while plants draw in carbon monoxide, they also pick up airborne pollutants through small openings called stomates in the leaves. They are very effective at removing gases such as formaldehyde, carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide, benzene, cigarette smoke, and ozone, which are harmful for us to breathe, but a gourmet meal for a plant. Aloe vera (which is a good plant to have around to treat burns and skin irritations), bamboo palm, common chrysanthemums, dracaena palms, philodendrons, golden pothos, spider plants, and scheffleras are among the better air filters.