Advancements in technology have given us many comforts and conveniences. But there are some major side effects of technology that we should never forget about. Global warming is one such crisis that the earth is going through right now. Anyone aware of global warming and the causes behind it must be aware that air pollution is largely responsible for global warming.
Along with global warming, air pollution also possesses some serious health issues. In this article, we are going to talk about the impact of air pollution on individuals and at the same time, we would be discussing the role that an air purifier can play.
Global warming and air pollution in brief
Carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases are released into the atmosphere from factories and vehicles. These are released when fossil fuels are burnt. The biggest disadvantage of these gases is that they absorb most of the radiation and sunlight that is reflected by the earth’s surface. This way, all such gases contribute to increasing the temperature of the atmosphere that is termed Global Warming.
Global warming affects the earth’s eco-system in many ways. Glaciers are melting and posing threat to all the coastal regions. Melting glaciers and other such things don’t show immediate effects but the health hazards caused by air pollution are quite quick. A lot of people who are living in cities having poor air quality index are dying out of lungs and other cardiovascular diseases. This is the major concern when we talk about air pollution.
Nowadays, people are going for air purifiers for getting pure air even in the cities having poor air quality index. There have been some serious debates over the efficiency of air purifiers. Later sections of this article will tell you about the utility of air purifiers. After finishing this article, you will be able to decide whether you need an air purifier or not. We will discuss several factors like the working of air purifiers.
Air purifiers
Several studies have revealed that the air inside our homes may contain five times more pollutants as compared to the air outside. The manufacturers of air purifiers claim that air purifiers are designed to filter several impurities, and other pollutants from the air present inside of our homes. Due to such a presence of pollutants in the air inside our homes, people use air purifiers in their homes to neutralize the threats that air pollution can cause.
Working of air purifiers
All the air purifiers come with a filter or even many filters. It is based on the type of air purifiers that how many filters it will have. Then, there is a fan that sucks in the air, and that air is circulated inside the purifier. When the air is sucked in the purifier, most of the pollutants are captured by the filter, and the fresh air is pushed into the living room again.
Your choice of an air purifier should consider the air quality in your city. If the pollution level is high enough then, you should get one having more filters. You also need to change the filters after some time. The life of the filter in your air purifier highly depends on several factors like usage of the air purifier, amount of pollutants present in the air, and the type of air purifier that you are using.
There are several categories of filters available in the market. Reusable filters can be used to filter out the pollutants and other suspended particles while UV filters can be used to filter biological impurities present in the air. Some filters are called ionizers that attract dust particles. But you need to be careful while buying purifiers that have ionizers because some purifiers of this type often produce ozone while working. This information is mentioned on the package of the air purifier. You should be careful enough if there is someone suffering from asthma in the house. The symptoms of all such patients may get worse due to inhalation of ozone.
How effective are the air purifiers?
Taking a look at most of the air purifiers available in the market, you will find that most of them are made to filter out pollen and dust-like particles. These purifiers have no effect on gases like volatile organic compounds and other fine particles. The efficiency of air purifiers decreases further if you don’t replace the filters on time.
A lot of people look at the claims made by the companies of air purifiers. But they should know that most of those claims are made based on the lab results. The situation in our homes differs very much as compared to the labs and this is the reason why purifiers can’t perform the way manufacturers claim.
Should you buy an air purifier for fresh air?
This is the question that most people ask about air purifiers. At first, you have to admit that air purifiers can never be one solution to all your problems with bad air in your home. In fact, most of the medical evidence shows that air purifiers hardly play any role in improving the health status of a sick person. As there are so many pollutants in the air and they have varied effects on the health of an individual, it is almost impossible to filter them all with a single machine. Although there are many air conditioners which are also coming with facility of Air Purifiers.
You can have an air purifier filter out the excessive dust but you should never have the intention that your air purifier is going to cut all the side-effects of polluted air.
Conclusion
We tried to give an overall idea about the role an air purifier can play. But you should not just rely on the air purifier alone for better air. There are some other things that you can do as well. Take a look at these easy tips to improve the air quality inside your home.
- The usage of candles should be minimized. In the same way, you should not burn wood and stop smoking in your home.
- There must be an exhaust fan in the kitchen.
- Vacuum clean your entire home on a regular basis to minimize the amount of dust in your home.
- Windows should be left open most of the `time. It will be helpful in ventilation and fresh air would flow through the rooms.
