
Let's Talk Indoor Air Quality
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Show Info: Eliminating Toxins and Irritants ... Worldwide.
Show Info: Eliminating Toxins and Irritants ... Worldwide.
How to Improve Air Quality in Your Home Here are some mind-blowing facts about the quality of your indoor air you probably hadn’t the slightest idea about. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in the USA ranks your IAQ as one of the top five risk factors for your health. Studies that have been conducted in the past have shown that the concentration of pollutants indoors is typically about 5 times greater than those outdoors. At its worst, these pollution levels went up to 100 times higher than their outdoor counterparts. Your Furniture May be the Most Dangerous Culprit If you have furniture that you bought before the year 2006, you’re probably at risk. Back then (and even today) furniture is coated with a special fireproof paint. This sometimes contains chemicals called PBDEs, which could release toxic chemical fumes into the air in small amounts over time. Some of these are known carcinogens. Advances in technology and chemistry have not, unfortunately, led to safer chemicals being introduced to the furniture industry. For more information check out our post on how to get rid of new furniture smell Candles are One of the Bigger Culprits For IAQ Everyone loves burning a scented candle while going about their day or evening. Exercise caution when buying one, though. In addition to the wax they are made of, any scented candle contains benzene and toluene. These are both known to be cancer-causing chemicals or carcinogens. Burning a candle also releases hydrocarbons similar to the exhaust smoke of a vehicle into the air. A safe bet to maintain the air quality in your home is too shy away from scented candles and this includes those that contain essential oils for scents and artificial scents as well. Your Printer Could Be Killing Your Fertility Do you have a printer at home? For most people, the common printer type is an inkjet printer. All inkjet type printers contain chemicals that can be emitted into your indoor air, in addition, these very same chemicals and VOcs have been linked by the EPA to cause damage to the reproductive system due to long-term exposure. If you print your documents out regularly, you stand at risk of having your fertility impacted by these chemicals. One of the best things you could do to avoid this is to get yourself a laser printer or to simply get all your printing done at a store instead. School