Helder Pedro
President, Airpura Industries
People spend almost 90 percent of their time indoors, and new research reveals that the indoor air we breathe is almost 5 times more polluted than the air outside.
When we think of air pollution, the first thing that comes to people’s mind is car emissions and factory fumes. Most are unaware of the dangerous pollutants that may be lurking right in their own homes. A person with asthma is particularly vulnerable to these indoor pollutants which can exacerbate their condition. The top culprits are tobacco smoke, mold, pollen (from outside), pet dander, and volatile organic compounds (VOCs) which are commonly found in cleaning products, paint, new furniture, and certain building materials, among other things.
Purifying indoor air
It can be difficult to completely eliminate these triggers from your home, which is why an air purifier can be instrumental in improving the lives of people with asthma by drastically reducing these allergens from their indoor air. Identifying what triggers your asthma is key to choosing the right air purifier, but there are two key elements an air purifier should contain.
The first is a high-efficiency particulate air (HEPA) filter, which is your most effective weapon against seasonal triggers such as pollen, grass, trees, weeds as well as smoke and pet dander. The HEPA filter is able to trap 99.97 percent of these airborne particles (as small as 0.3 microns) directly onto its surface, completely removing them from your air stream. The second element is activated carbon (the more, the better), which acts like a “sponge” to trap and absorb chemical triggers such as VOCs, chemicals, and other strong odors.
Living with chronic asthma can be difficult, but small adaptations to your living/work environment can result in a positive and measurable impact on the quality of your life.