Indoor Air Pollution

What is cleaner, the air in your house or the air outside? Unless you live next door to a coal burning plant that is emitting tons of smoke every day, a normal person would tend to believe that the air inside their own home is cleaner than the air outside. According to scientific studies they would be wrong. Studies have proven that in most cases indoor air is drastically less clean than outside air. Why? According to an article in E, The Environmental Magazine, indoor air pollutants are consumed everyday by the general population, and it doesn’t matter where you live. Whether in an urban center or a rural setting, indoor pollutants can be found. Indoor pollutants come from a variety of different sources including carpets, furniture, cleaning solutions, paint strippers, tobacco smoke, solvents in inks, and even air fresheners. Most are relatively harmless, only causing minor respiratory irritation, including shortness of breath and allergies. Some, however, can cause real problems. Pollutants like benzene from tobacco smoke and formaldehyde from paint strippers are proven carcinogens, and lead to a variety of cancers. But the horror does stop there. Most indoor pollutants are like stealth bombers, you cannot see them until after the devastation has occurred. Some, such as air fresheners and cleaning solutions, are meant to have a pleasant smell in order to mask odor, but they still can cause health problems.
How can we put an end to these indoor pollutants? For years people have been buying expensive electric air filters that clean the indoor air, expensive air filters that draw in and mix outdoor air with indoor air, and even simple filters that can be installed over air vents to filter out pollutants. The only real problem with these types of air filters is that they all run off of electricity which causes more pollution whether it is indoor or outdoor. It is a pick your poison scenario, would you rather die from indoor toxins from everyday products, or would you rather die from outdoor pollution caused by the power plants that provide electricity for your indoor air filters?
While this is a perhaps extreme characterization of the situation, there is nevertheless an electricity free method of purifying indoor air and removing indoor pollutants. The simple answer deals with house hold plants. According to research by Dr. B.C. Wolverton, there are a number of plants an individual can by that will filter out harmful indoor pollutants much like electric air filters. Plants such as the rubber plant and Bamboo Palm can filter out many pollutants and leave indoor air “very clean.” The process has something to do with soil in such plants as the rubber plant. Plants, much like humans, need air to breath. For example once the rubber plant “breaths in” the harmful pollutants, its soil biodegrades each of the chemicals and almost pure air is the byproduct. Also, a number of soil microbes found in each of these purifying plants help to clear the air of the pollutants.
So what does this mean to the everyday citizen? Imagine the same scenario but dealing with drinking water. Would a person drink a brown glass of water, filled with germs, bacteria, and dirt, or would a person rather drink a clean glass of water free from toxins? This answer may sound simple, and with water most dangers are very visible. Indoor air pollution, on the other hand, is not so apparent. Indoor air pollution is a stealth killer. Just because you cannot see the pollutants in the air does not mean they are not there, and some are deadly. Buying and placing cheap and low maintenance house hold plants can help purify indoor air, without causing the added outdoor pollution electric air purifiers eventually make. Plants can help prevent outdoor pollution, and help purify indoor pollution. So the next time you want to freshen the air of your home or office, consider buying a plant, your area will be cleaner and more beautiful.

Josh Wyatt, Legal Intern