Is your indoor air bad for you? Why you should measure VOC and steps to reduce exposure
Did you know that everyday items such as furniture, children’s toys, and even paper can emit gases that can be harmful to your health?
You may not have heard about VOCs (Volatile Organic Compounds) before but you have definitely inhaled some.
VOCs are gases emitted from toxins and chemicals found in many everyday items such as perfume, candles, and cooking fumes – actually, they can stem from thousands of different products, according to the United States Environmental Protection Agency.
But why should you care about these VOCs in the air?
The negative health effects of VOCs
Because VOCs are emitted from toxins and other chemicals, these gases are unhealthy to inhale.
Obviously, they are impossible to escape completely in today’s world, and small amounts of VOCs aren’t dangerous.
But living in environments with higher levels of VOCs can have serious health effects that can range from short-term effects such as eye, nose, and throat irritation, headache, and nausea to long-term effects such as kidney and liver damage, cancer, and impact on the reproductive system.
Not surprisingly, indoor air is generally more polluted than outdoor air – in fact, it can be up to 5 times more polluted with VOCs.
And because we spend around 90% of our time indoors, it is important to know if we expose ourselves to levels of VOC pollution that are too high.
How to reduce exposure to VOCs
Even though it’s hard to escape VOCs completely, there are steps you can take to limit you and your family’s exposure to VOCs:
- Increase ventilation in your home – especially when using products that are known to emit VOCs such as paint, cleaning products, and even new furniture
- Regularly change air filters in your indoor ventilation system
- Store toxic products away from your home in a shed or garage
- VOCs can leak even from closed containers, so throw away containers of old or unneeded chemicals safely
- Buy limited quantities of products with high levels of VOCs, so you don’t have to keep storage
- Follow product label instructions carefully to avoid risks of high exposure
- Get an air quality sensor that monitors VOC levels in your home.
Air Quality Sensor – the all-in-one smart sensor that monitors VOCs, humidity, and temperature in your home
The quality of your indoor air is essential to living a healthy, comfortable life free from health issues caused or worsened by bad air.
The wireless Air Quality Sensor from frient makes it easy to monitor the level of harmful chemicals in your indoor air, so you can always ensure great air quality for your family.
This smart sensor can even warn you on your smartphone if the indoor air quality gets bad, so you know when to let in fresh air before the bad air starts causing issues.
Afraid of mold or suffering from allergies? By tracking the humidity level in the air, the frient Air Quality Sensor can also warn you when the air gets too humid, so you can prevent mold in your house.
And if the air is too dry, it can cause dry eyes and allergies – if this is the case, the Air Quality Sensor will alert you, so you can act quickly.
