If it seems to you more people are suffering from colds, the flu and viruses than used to be the case then you may not be imagining it. We live in a heavily industrialised world, in which vehicle and industrial emissions and chemical by-products are all known to be harmful, causing serious ill-health in millions of people across the planet. And yet, what’s far less noted is that indoor air nowadays is also a culprit. Indeed, it’s been estimated that today’s indoor air may actually be up to six times – or even 10 times – worse for your health than outdoor air. Yes, really.
How is this possible? Well, the United States Government’s Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has found that around 60 percent of all homes in that nation alone contain airborne pollutants that can harm human health. And the American College of Allergies has reported that as much as half of all modern-day illnesses are a result of air pollution – but not outdoor air pollution; indoor air pollution.
Moreover, it’s believed that, among the likes of dangerous toxins and infectious bacteria, allergens become concentrated in today’s highly insulated homes up to 200 percent more than standard homes. The truth is that, thanks to the drive to insulate our homes and the offices in which so many of us work and so save energy costs and cut unnecessary emissions, we’re simply not ventilating the air in our buildings as much as we used to. The result? Very bad indoor air; so bad it may contain up to 100 times the number toxins as the air on the other side of the window. Without proper filtration of the air we breathe indoors then, it’s inevitable that damage – perhaps even severe damage – could be done to the tissue of many people’s lungs and, of course, without them having the foggiest idea it’s happening. And most of them have probably never even taken up smoking either.
The effect of allergens
It needs pointing out too that allergens play an increasingly potent role in the poor quality of indoor air. Apparently, there’s more than 1,000 separate species of mould and mildew in indoor environments; your own home is quite possibly a potential source of chronic respiratory or sinus problems, whether you like it or not – a staggering statistic goes that when a baby crawls over just a section of a room’s average carpet they’re likely inhaling the same toxic level as they would by smoking four cigarettes a day1.
Other home-based allergies can occur because of pets, not least the most popular four-legged family accompaniments, cats and dogs. And, contrary to popular belief, it’s not usually because such a pet may have long hair that’ll cause an allergic reaction or make for a worse allergy, as the source of the allergy is more likely to be the dander beneath the cat or dog’s hair rather than the hair itself (specifically, microscopic bits of dry skin that gets everywhere and you can’t see).
Tackling indoor air pollution
So, what’s the answer? What can we do to depollute the air of our homes, office spaces and more? Well, unless you run the business or organisation you work for, it may be difficult to alter the environment in which you spend several hours a day working, but you should and can definitely do something about your home’s indoor air. For instance, if you own a pet you shouldn’t necessarily get rid of it (unless its dander is resulting in allergic reactions that seriously affect your everyday life), but you should at least face up to the reality of what’s happening. To that end too, it’s important to bear in mind the statistics and facts stated above and not just reject them; your home should be the ultimate haven of comfort and repose in your life but it’s unlikely to be if just dismiss the points made above out of hand (for instance, synthetic, chemical-derived cleaning products also contain a level of toxicity; something to remember if you use them several times a day).
Overall, though, the easiest thing to address is the likely lack of ventilation in a modern home. In contrast to a draughty old house that’s several decades old, today’s homes are relatively airtight – the bad air can’t escape. Especially if you use air conditioning; which, to operate effectively, requires windows to be closed. In which case, consider investing in and using indoor air exchange systems and air purification systems to keep the environment cleaner and far more toxin/ allergen-free
Lung cleansing
Another approach – and something you may want to try in addition to purifying your indoor environment – is to cleanse your body’s lungs. Now, to read that, it may sound a little extreme, but, if you follow the advice below (all of which is totally harmless; don’t worry!), you’ll find it actually involves far from drastic, very sensible activities:
- Breathing exercises – you can clear your airwaves, remove toxins from your lungs and strengthen them via deep breathing exercises; moreover, they offer the additional benefit of delivering more, highly nourishing oxygen to the lungs and wider body (it’s a great idea to engage in deep breathing for a few minutes in a quiet, relaxed space twice a day)
- Diet – believe it or not, there are certain foods you can throw into your diet on a regular basis that’ll promote healthy function of your lungs; pistachios are rich in gamma-tocopherol (a Vitamin E variation that may reduce the risk of developing lung cancer), while plantain leaf has a handy habit of quelling mucous thereby aiding with congestion-related respiratory issues and cayenne peppers can ease irritation of the respiratory system, not least for those suffering from coughs and sore throats owing to infection
- Natural remedies – finally, you might consider giving naturally-occurring plant-based remedies a whirl; why not when a whole roster of them (such as eucalyptus, lungwort, peppermint and osha root) were a staple of indigenous cultures and ancient civilisations in treating respiratory issues many millennia before the invention of synthetically-produced medication.
And to that end, you may like the idea of getting your fill of such naturally-derived respiratory remedies in the form of single lung cleanse products – both of the following examples are available through us at The Finchley Clinic and come highly recommended:
Allertrex – offers support for respiratory ailments, assists with normal lung functions and is developed with the specific aim of cleansing the lungs of harmful agents that inhibit their function.
Restore Sinus Spray – a proprietary blend of trace minerals suspended in purified water, designed to cleanse, soothe and hydrate the delicate membranes that line your nasal passages.
Reference:
- Intuitive Environmental Solutions. ‘Facts about indoor air quality’. http://www.intuitiveenvsol.com/indoor-air-quality-faq.html. n.p.