Breathing quality air should be a human right and something simple, but pollution often prevents it. We worry that cars and industries will foul the air outside, we try to avoid that pollution and breathe the natural air from time to time, but we are not aware of the problem in the interior spaces, be it the home or the place of work.
However, in closed locations the concentration of pollutants is higher than outside, and therefore the potential health problems are more frequent and acute. This is more likely to occur in hermetic buildings, such as office buildings, where the so-called “sick building syndrome” sometimes occurs.
In cities, most people spend more than 90 percent of their time indoors, and the proportion is even higher among vulnerable people, such as infants, the elderly and the chronically ill. Few suspect that their discomfort may be due, at least in part, to the fact that they breathe too heavily laden with toxic and irritating agents.
Inadvertent symptoms
Symptoms-crankiness, itching, coughing, mood swings, chest pain, nasal congestion, or difficulty concentrating-are often mild and temporary, so they are sometimes confused with viral infections, stress, allergies, or transient organ transplants. However, chronic exposure to pollutants can cause severe respiratory and cardiac diseases, and even cancer.
Neither patients nor doctors are accustomed to looking at contaminants as the source of many health problems. But the truth is that it does not take expensive and sophisticated tests to suspect that the problem is in the air you breathe: a feeling of a vitiated atmosphere, unpleasant odors, irritations in the eyes, nose or throat, traces of mold – black dust or white on walls, furniture or objects – or excessive dust.
In any case, it is possible to prevent alterations by taking the necessary measures to improve the overall quality of the interior of the home. In this way, not only the occurrence of disorders is avoided, but it will significantly increase the sensation of vitality.
How to clean the environment
Avoid VOCs (Volatile Organic Compounds). At home there is a wide variety of sources of VOCs, mainly responsible for the sick building syndrome. These gases, whose presence is two to five times greater indoors than in the exterior, are emitted mainly by furniture and plywood panels, wall paper inks, paints, carpets, carpets, Synthetic coatings, glues, adhesives and cleaning products typical of home and dry cleaners. In addition, they are found in personal products such as perfumes, lacquers, nail polish, lipstick…
The release of VOCs occurs with special intensity when the object or material is new. According to a report by the World Health Organization, 30% of new or refurbished premises can raise complaints about indoor air quality for this reason.
VOCs become a hazard in rooms where air circulation is not good because the windows are permanently closed. Formaldehyde, widely used in carpentry, household products and cosmetics, is found in virtually every home and its effect is especially aggressive. At the very least, it is irritating and chronic exposure of sensitive people is associated with headaches, numbness, memory loss, menstrual irregularities and certain types of cancer. Other VOCs that are frequently found in homes are ammonia, present in cleaning products, and perchloroethylene, used in dry cleaners.
Natural materials are the best option to avoid the generation of VOCs: untreated solid woods, unglazed parquet, walls painted with ecological products – silicate paints – wool, cotton, jute, coconut or seaweed carpets, cosmetic products And natural hygiene …
Ventilation is the other essential strategy to avoid the concentration of irritating and toxic gases. Before a new object and suspected to emit VOCs, its elimination can be accelerated by heating the room as much as possible for 48 hours for the compounds to evaporate. Of course, during this time, especially delicate people, animals and plants must remain outside it. After heating, ventilate completely for at least one day.
Humidity must be controlled to be between 35 and 45 percent, which can be done with a simple hygrometer. If it is below the lower limit – it often occurs in winter, when the heating works at its maximum – the skin, the mucous membranes and the eyes, especially if you wear contact lenses, are dry. Poorly hydrated mucous membranes become a suitable field for the multiplication of germs and the chances of contracting flu, colds and pharyngitis increase. Asthmatics also suffer from dryness that irritates their airways, which are more vulnerable than normal.
On the other hand, the dryness does not only affect the people and the alive beings, also the plants of interior can lose their leaves. Computers break down more frequently in a dry environment, the wooden floors shrink and the pieces separate, the wallpapers peel off, and cracks often appear in the plaster of the walls.
To control the humidity, it is advisable to ventilate the spaces daily and not to abuse the heating. The more indoor plants you have, the better, because they release water vapor through the stomata (pores) found in the leaves and thus collaborate effectively in maintaining the humidity of a room.
However, an even greater problem is usually excess moisture, because it favors the development of mites, molds and bacteria. As a result, people living in damp homes have a higher-than-normal incidence of diseases, especially lung disorders and allergies.
Mites contact us with proteins that trigger allergic reactions in sensitive people, while molds release spores and toxins that come in contact with the respiratory system. To control mite infestation, it is best to clean daily the dust, sweeping, vacuuming and wiping a damp cloth on the surfaces of the furniture, etc. In addition, it is necessary to use few carpets and to wash frequently and hot water all the linen of bed.
No specific paints are required to combat molds that may contain highly contaminating ingredients. Many products rely on substances with an antibiotic effect that, when released into the environment, increase the risk of the emergence of resistant bacteria dangerous to human health. The best option is to avoid root moisture. Mold contamination can be caused by flooding, seepage from roofs or water pipes, carpets or carpets that are constantly wet, as well as poor ventilation of the bathroom or kitchen. If a cellulosic material, such as paper, wood or plaster, gets wet and does not dry completely in 48 hours, mold colonies spread and invade spore air.
The colonization of the environment with bacteria is rarer and is usually produced paradoxically because of the devices used to improve air quality, such as air conditioners, dehumidifiers and humidifiers, since they usually have water reservoirs that serve as broth.
Bacteria can lead to diseases such as salmonellosis and tuberculosis, the incidence of which is increasing due to growing agglomeration in cities. There is even a so-called “humidifier fever,” a flu-like illness marked by fever, headache, chills, muscle aches and general malaise, but without significant lung symptoms. The main thing is to keep the ducts and filters of air conditioning or heating systems clean and dry to prevent the proliferation of germs.
The excessive moisture is prevented avoiding condensation, which is a result of the temperature difference between the inside and the outside. For this reason, the internal temperature must be limited to a maximum of 20 degrees. It is essential to ventilate and, if necessary, resort to extractors in kitchens and bathrooms. If, however, humidity is still high, we should consult a specialist to check the insulation of the house.
Do not use pesticides. They are not a problem only in agriculture: the use of pesticides is also very frequent in the cities, with the aggravating fact that they are used in enclosed spaces.
Pesticides sold for home use, such as impregnated strips, sprays and pumps, include a variety of chemical compounds that cause irreversible damage to the nervous and hormonal systems. They can even promote the development of cancers.
Acute intoxication, due to exposure to high doses of pesticides; Or chronic, because of small but constant doses, are the main cause of idiopathic environmental disease, also called “multiple chemical sensitivity” or “total allergy.”
Even mothballs emit small amounts of dangerous substances. Instead you have to resort to natural means to control flies, ants and cockroaches.
Remove shoes. It may seem that shoes do not have much to do with air quality. However, removing them as soon as you enter the house will prevent dust and the indoor atmosphere from being filled with pesticides and lead. This is a very toxic heavy metal, whose effects are especially serious on the nervous system of children. Although transportation fuels no longer contain lead, the fuel that has been used for decades is deposited on the asphalt and the sidewalks we step on.
Lead is also released from surfaces colored with old paints, as it is currently not allowed to be used. On the other hand, burning newspapers or magazines in the fireplace releases the lead contained in the printing inks into the air. Consideration should also be given to lead content in handicraft materials, such as those used in ceramics and glass.
It is easy to imagine that meeting a little of each of the problems pointed out is enough to create an unbreakable environment, since, together, they form a kind of toxic soup from which it is difficult to escape. The good news is that the measures to avoid it are very simple and that the effects are felt in every breath of clean air we breathe.
