indoor air quality Archives | Naturepedic Blog

How to Breathe Easier at Home

May 14 2018

Spring has arrived, so many of us are now flocking outdoors as much as possible. Even though you may be limiting your time indoors, don’t forget to keep the air in your home as clean as possible. In honor of May being Clean Air Month, we challenge you to try at least one of these tips to purify the air in your home. 1. Use Natural Cleaning Products While trying to clean all the dust and dander in your home, don’t add other irritants. Many conventional cleaning products contain chemicals that can irritate, so try switching to something more natural, such as vinegar, lemon juice or mild soap and water. We share other natural cleaning ideas on our blog as well. Your home will still be clean, and you can breathe easy. 2. Reduce Your Heat/Air Conditioning Usage in Your Home It’s warming up, so you no longer have to crank up the heat and keep the windows locked up.[…]

Mar 22 2018

This spring, don’t think you’re limited to only growing plants outdoors. Bring the outside in and use your bedroom as an herbological oasis with indoor plants. There are many indoor plants that are especially wise to seed in your bedroom because of the many benefits they have for your sleep and your well-being. Not to mention they add some beautiful color to the space. We share five of our favorite indoor plants to let bloom in the bedroom. Gerbera Daisy These beautiful daisies are great to grow in your house during the spring and summer because they need medium to bright light. They also release oxygen into the air, helping create a fresher environment for you. Just don’t forget to water them regularly! English Ivy If you’re looking to filter out some of the many common allergens in your bedroom, try growing English Ivy. Water it regularly and put it near the sunlight to have a lovely addition to your[…]

Dec 27 2017

Winter is also better known as cold and flu season. Sniffling, sneezing and coughing can seriously put a damper on your winter activities. So while you can’t control what your coworkers or people in public are doing to put health first, you can control what happens in your home. To stay happy this winter, we share some healthy home habits for you to implement this winter. 1.) Don’t Skip Your Cleaning Ritual The days are getting darker earlier, and the temperature is dropping. When you get home from work or simply have a lazy Saturday, it’s easy to let household cleaning fall out of pattern. In the winter, however, you are bringing home all kinds of germs, so make sure you clean surfaces regularly. You don’t want to be surrounded by germs. 2.) Stay On Top Of Clutter The dim lights of winter have proven to have a negative effect on many people’s mental health. Studies also show that surrounding[…]

Nov 07 2014

I attended a wonderful webinar sponsored by the Sustainable Furnishings Council in which interior designer Jillian Pritchard Cooke spoke on the importance of better indoor air quality. She also discussed how the furnishings in a home play a part. The webinar was entitled Reducing Harmful Toxins in the Home: Combating the tight box syndrome. Tight box syndrome, also called sick building syndrome, refers to a health condition created by modern houses and offices where indoor contaminants remain circulating in in the air, trapped by the tight seals of today’s buildings like air in in a spaceship. Pritchard Cooke is a principal at design firm DES-SYN and the founder of Wellness Within Your Walls, an organization dedicated to not only reducing toxins during the interior design process but also in promoting more sustainable and responsible materials. She said she became focused on designing more eco-friendly living spaces after she was diagnosed with a rare form of cancer, which she suspects[…]

Is Indoor Air Quality at School Affecting Your Child’s Health or Performance?

Nov 19 2010

If you’ve been diligent about indoor air quality at home and are concerned about the air quality at your child’s school, the American Lung Association has teamed up with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to give you the tools you need to help clean it up. Why is indoor air quality an issue? According to the EPA: “Indoor air quality (IAQ) is a critical component of providing a healthy and comfortable learning environment. Indoor air pollutants may cause or contribute to short- and long-term health problems including asthma, respiratory tract infection and disease, allergic reactions, headaches, nasal congestion, eye and skin irritations, coughing, sneezing, fatigue, dizziness, and nausea. In addition, indoor air pollutants and extremes in temperature and humidity may cause discomfort, which can affect students’ ability to concentrate and learn.” Obviously, indoor air quality can have a serious effect on your child’s health, as well as their school performance. In fact, it makes you wonder how many learning disability[…]

Cleaning Baby’s Nursery Air with House Plants

Nov 17 2009

Years ago I read a book called “How to Grow Fresh Air: 50 House Plants that Purify Your Home or Office.” The book is very informative. It covers the various factors that contribute to our poor indoor air quality – everything from the 1973 OPEC oil embargo to new materials used for building, furnishings, and so on – and tells us which plants absorb and help neutralize the volatile organic compounds (VOCs) being emitted from these materials. It’s very specific – tells you which plants are good for which compounds. I lost my copy of the book in a move, and am definitely going to get another. The link above goes to Amazon.com if you’re interested in getting one. What reminded me of this book is that I just read the results of a two-year study conducted by NASA and the Associated Landscape Contractors of America (ALCA) on house plants cleaning indoor air. They put each plant in sealed, Plexiglas[…]

Tag - indoor air quality

How to Breathe Easier at Home

Seeding Indoor Plants For Your Bedroom

5 Healthy Home Habits For Winter

Wellness Within Your Walls Promotes Indoor Air Quality

Is Indoor Air Quality at School Affecting Your Child’s Health or Performance?

Cleaning Baby’s Nursery Air with House Plants