The desk from Ikea, the pretty pink wall color: a perfect room for your perfect child. But did you know that this seemingly perfect room is emitting harmful gasses like formaldehyde into the air your child breathes?
Gasses are emitted into the air we breathe from our furniture, building materials and chemicals that we use in the home. These gasses include formaldehyde, benzene and perchloroethylene and methylene chloride, all known or suspected carcinogens.
Formaldehyde is used in furniture or cabinets made from pressboard. Formaldehyde is in the glue that holds pressboard together. Many inexpensive desks, tables, bookcases and shelves are made from pressboard and are off gassing formaldehyde into the air.
If you can, choose furniture products that are made from solid wood instead of pressboard. Or find formaldehyde free or low formaldehyde pressed wood furniture. Ikea sells low formaldehyde pressed wood furniture and at a great price too!
The paint we use in our home releases a plethora of toxic chemicals. We know to paint in a well-ventilated area but that paint is still affecting the indoor air quality for days afterwards. Stored paint too can release gasses into the air. These gasses are called VOCs or volatile organic compounds. Doesn’t sound too healthy does it?
Nowadays we have the option of low voc or voc free paints. They are more expensive than regular paint but are much better for our lungs.
Sherwin Williams and Benjamin Moore Paints both have a line of low voc or zero voc paints called Harmony and Natura, respectively.
Old paint, along with pesticides, fertilizers and other chemicals you store in your home can also affect your indoor air quality. Stored paint can release benzene, a known carcinogen.
Store paints and other chemicals in the garage or in a shed as far away from your living areas as possible. If you’d rather just remove old paint buckets from your home, make sure you dispose of them in a responsible manner. Search for paint recycling in your area using Earth 911.
Another source of contaminants to your indoor air quality can be your clothes! When you put your freshly dry cleaned clothes in your closet you are introducing some of those dry cleaning chemicals into the air you breathe.
The most dangerous dry cleaning chemical is called perchloroethylene or perc. Look for green dry cleaners that avoid the use of this carcinogen to keep it out of the air in your home.
Since you can’t start with a fresh home, with fresh no voc paint, nor can you throw away all of your pressboard furniture what should you do?
You can start with the maintenance of your heating/cooling system. Make sure it is in good shape and that you are replacing its filters regularly.
The easiest and most beautiful way to improve the air quality in your home? Plants! Certain species of houseplants remove air impurities such as formaldehyde and benzene. You can find a list of all of these beneficial plants on wikipedia.
With a little care and knowledge, we can still have beautiful homes and healthy indoor air!
