As temperatures soar and heatwaves intensify across India, it's crucial to safeguard our homes from indoor air pollution. Heat waves and poor air quality often go hand-in-hand because lingering high pressure creates a stagnant environment. With light winds and no precipitation, pollutants don't get cleared from the air, and they build up right above ground level. Moreover, high temperature leads to forest fires which further increases the AQI levels.
According to the Dyson Global Connected Data report, India recorded the highest average annual PM2.5 levels exceeding the World Health Organization's long-term exposure guidelines for over half the year. Akshay Krishna, Design Engineer at Dyson, offered insights on maintaining a healthy home environment during extreme heatwaves and increased indoor air pollution.
Impact of formaldehyde on indoor air
Formaldehyde is a colourless gas that can be released by various household items. Furniture and wooden products containing formaldehyde-based resins, such as plywood and fiberboard, insulating materials, do-it-yourself products like paint, wallpapers, varnishes, and household cleaning products are all potential sources of this harmful gas. This air pollutant is present in most homes, but during heatwaves, the release rate of toxic gases like formaldehyde tends to be faster. This means indoor concentrations will be higher. This makes it crucial to address indoor air pollution and find effective ways to mitigate the risk associated with prolonged exposure to harmful pollutants like formaldehyde.
Indoor air can be worse than outdoor air
Home isn’t always a heaven, and indoor air pollution can be worse than outdoors. Pollution can be generated indoors through day-to-day activities, enter the house from outside, emit from surfaces, and eventually make up a complex cocktail of pollutants. Indoor and outdoor air pollution are often treated as two separate entities, but outdoor pollutants, such as vehicle exhaust fumes, pollen, and mould spores, can also enter our indoor spaces. Once inside, they can react with indoor pollutants, creating a complex cocktail of dirty air. These chemical reactions happen even faster during a heatwave.4As we increasingly seal our homes to seemingly shut pollution out, in truth, we may be shutting it in.
Need to invest in an Air purifier!
Investing in an air purifier is one of the most effective ways to remove a wide range of pollutants from the air. Advanced filtration technologies, such as HEPA and carbon filters, can remove a wide range of pollutants, including dust, pollen, pet dander, smoke, and VOCs.
We can do little to control the quality of the air we breathe outside. But we can follow these tips to try and keep your home free of pollution:
Use cleaning products wisely: Some of the VOCs found in our homes can come from the chemicals in cleaning products we use on kitchen surfaces, bathrooms and windows. Using natural cleaning products can help lower the amount of VOCs in your indoor air.
Vacuum regularly: When you dust your sofa or play with a cushion, one might see a burst of dust in the air. This dust can stay in the air indoors and be breathed in, however, regular vacuuming is one of the easiest ways to reduce particulate pollution at home.
Scents in moderation: Some of the things we might enjoy at home, like scented candles, can also be sources of indoor air pollution. Rather than completely letting go of lighting candles, try them in moderation and preferably in the evening.
Be careful when letting in “fresh air”: If you reside close to a high-traffic area or a busy road, opening the window can allow outdoor pollution, gases like nitrogen dioxide and sulphur dioxide, into your home.
