Indoor air quality can have a significant impact on the health and safety of you and your family. It’s no secret that repeatedly breathing-in air that is contaminated with pollutants can have negative repercussions, some of which can lead to respiratory illnesses like asthma (affecting 1 in 10 people today). Surprisingly enough, however, a great deal of today’s homeowners don’t take the importance of maintaining good indoor air quality into consideration, and many of these individuals live in homes that are putting their families’ health at risk.
What Sources Cause Poor IAQ?
The first step towards eliminating any worries about poor IAQ in your home is to understand what can cause it in the first place. A variety of different factors can affect the quality of the air within your home, some of which are organic in nature and some of which are not. These include the following:
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Fumes from your heating system or stove
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Tobacco smoke
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Mold
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Insulation that contains asbestos
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Cleaning solvents
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Wood stoves
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Pests
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Dustmites
A number of the above sources are quite noticeable in how they foster poor-quality indoor air, but many others are not. Radon, for example, is associated with a tremendous amount of health risks and has been linked to lung cancer in 1% of the population, yet it is undetectable by the human nose. For this and other reasons, modern homeowners should always work with a team of professionals to determine whether or not any issues exist.
Short-term and Long-term Health Risks
It’s important to realize that people often react very differently from one another to air pollutants. Poor indoor air quality can sometimes bring about short-term health issues such as sore throat, headache or runny nose, similar to how one might experience exposure to an outside allergen. Long-term health effects from consistent exposure to poor-quality indoor air, however, can lead to various types of respiratory illnesses and even cancer in some scenarios. Often, the damage done by poor indoor air quality happens over a period of many years.
Improving Indoor Air Quality in Your Home
Every homeowner wants to know that they’re doing whatever possible to protect the health of their family, and taking steps towards improving your home’s IAQ can stop potential health problems at their source. There are a number of things that can be done to improve air quality and comfort within a home, including the following:
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Radon testing
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Air cleaning & filtration
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Ventilation
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Weatherization (particularly helpful for asthmatics)
Since every home is different, it’s essential to have a team of professionals survey your individual situation and determine what might be the best course of action to follow. WeatherSeal has a deep understanding of indoor air quality and can help to ensure that the air in your home is safe to breathe for you and your family. Contact us today for more information.
