I am relatively certain that you feel it is. For the most part, you are probably right!
Most families live in a home that they keep clean of dirt, and the obvious things that cause germs and an unhealthy environment.
However, there are a lot of things that can decrease the overall healthfulness of your living environment and the overall health of you and your family.
For example, what about the air you are breathing, or the water you are drinking, or even the food you are eating? Is the air free of allergens, smoke, pet dander, mold spores and GERMS? Is the water you are drinking free of fluoride and other harmful chemicals, is it acidic? For that matter, are you and your family drinking ENOUGH water? Are you drinking water from plastic bottles that leach chemicals into the water? Is the food you are eating healthy or not so much? Is it free of chemical herbicides and pesticides?
This article will deal primarily with water and air, and touch on how the right water can help you with food preparation to keep it safe.
First, let’s talk about the air you and your family are breathing every day. Did you know that the EPA (Environmental Protection Agency) says that indoor air can be 2-10 times more polluted than outdoor air? They further say that in the worst conditions, it can be 10 times more polluted!
What causes this pollution? Well, there is a variety of pollens, smoke, mold spores, pet dander, human skin flakes, dust mites, dust particles, chemicals from household cleaners, chemicals from laundry detergents, air fresheners, chemicals from carpet and furniture fabrics, and from cabinetry (glues, stains, formaldehyde etc.), mold spores from the bathroom, laundry room and ventilation ducts, and a whole lot more. In addition to that, there are germs, bacteria and viruses that blow in through open windows and doors, or get brought in by you and your family. Now that school is starting again, the kids are bringing home who knows what from the school rooms, playgrounds and from other kids.
In addition to pollutants, there are various smells and odors from laundry, pets, people, cooking, and a variety of other causes. Many people use chemical or heat activated air fresheners to remove these odors. Do you want to know a secret? These so called “air fresheners” don’t remove odors! They just cover them up with a more pleasant smelling odor…. And, some not so good for you chemicals!
So what is the answer? Get a good quality Active Air Purifier. What is the difference between an active air purifier and an air filter? Well, an air filter is a device using a combination of fans and filters (sometimes even HEPA filters) to take large particles out of some of the air that you are breathing. What do I mean by that? Well, filters rely on sucking air in to the unit and through a filter and blowing it out into the air pool that you are breathing. “What’s wrong with that?” you ask. Lots of things!
Air Filter Issues
First, most air filters, even good HEPA filters only remove particles larger than 3 microns from the air. Nearly 98% of all particles are less than 0.3 microns in diameter. The most harmful are in the 0.1 to 0.25 micron range.
Second, only the air that is pulled into the unit and passed through the filter has these large particles removed. That is only the air that the intake side of the fan can pull in and anything that blocks that airflow reduces that.
Third, only the air that is blown out of the front of the filter unit has particles removed. That is why most filters have an effective range of between 150 to 300 square feet, or a small room. Therefore you need multiple units in your home.
Fourth, COST! These units use filters which must be replaced often. A dirty filter puts more polluted air into your breathing space. Some filters can be cleaned a few times but must eventually be replaced. HEPA filters MUST be replaced, they cannot be cleaned, and they are expensive.
Finally, and most importantly, Air Filters are PASSIVE UNITS! That means they rely on simply treating the air that passes through the filter. It doesn’t treat the air in the whole room.
Active Air Purifiers
An active air purifier works entirely differently. They use ultraviolet light, negative ions, and other technologies to actually purify all the air in the room. Some add small amounts of activated oxygen (Ozone). These units actively send these “scrubbers” out into the air to attack the pollutants and particles in the air stream and take them out of the air. They remove particles as small as 0.1 microns from your breathing space. There are even a few units of this type that will KILL GERMS ON SURFACES! These units will kill germs and bacteria and viruses including MRSA, e-coli, strep, influenza and a host of others, on countertops, furniture, door knobs, flush handles, etc.
Because these units don’t require filters, they are inexpensive to use, require very limited cleaning and are effective in spaces ranging from 800 to over 3200 square feet. They are, therefore less expensive to own. Even though the purchase price in some cases is higher than an air filter, cost of ownership is far less.
Active air purifiers are one of the most effective things you can do to have healthy air in your home.
What about Water?
The tap water in nearly every city in the country has a variety of chemicals in it. Some of these chemicals are actually put in by the city to allegedly kill germs and remove other chemicals, and metals. Fluoride, which is a known harmful chemical is put in virtually all water in the country. In addition, some jurisdictions add lye in order to reduce corrosion in the water delivery system. And very many areas have hexavalent chromium in their water. This is the chemical that the movie Erin Brokovich was about.
In addition, there is pollution from pharmaceuticals in a lot of tap water, and many dissolved solids that are not very good for you.
So, what do you do about that? Most homes would be well served to install a good water purifier. There are whole house systems. Counter top systems, and under counter systems at a variety of affordable prices. There are even shower head filters to get the chemicals out of your shower water and protect your hair and skin. Every family should consider water filtration.
Then there is the Type of Water you are drinking. More and more health and nutrition professionals are recommending that you drink alkaline water. According to many sources, even President Obama drinks alkaline water. This water helps maintain the proper pH balance in your body, helps your body hydrate more efficiently, and provides beneficial antioxidants which help your body fight disease, lose weight, reduce the effects of aging, help your skin, and a whole variety of other benefits. You can acquire alkaline water ionizers for your home in a variety of types and costs.
Electric ionizers also produce acidic water, which can be used for washing vegetables and meats to kill e-coli and other germs, as a cleaning agent for mirrors and countertops etc. and eliminate expensive, polluting and dangerous chemical cleaners. A few of these units will even produce Hypochlorous acid which is used in wound treatment.
As you can see, there are a lot of things you can do to make your home more healthful. There is even something you can do with water to make your laundry more healthful. You can use a device called Laundry Pure which changes the composition of the water going into your washing machine so you wash your clothes in COLD WATER AND USE NO DETERGENT, BLEACH OR SOFTENER. This device gets your laundry cleaner, more germ free, more color vibrant and helps your clothes last longer.
It has been tested to kill 99.999% of germs, leave clothes fresh smelling and bright. Because it eliminates detergent, your family won’t be getting rashes or allergies from the chemicals in detergents and You will save money by reducing hot water consumption, eliminating detergent and bleach costs, as well as saving money on clothing replacement costs. Your clothing and towels will be softer, brighter and fluffier because they won’t have detergent residue in them. Best of all, perhaps, is that you won’t be dumping chemically polluted laundry water into the water table so you will be doing something good for environmental health as well!
For information on Active Air Purifiers, Water Purifiers and Ionizers and the Laundry Pure products visit www.greenhealthtechnologies.com
