Air and water quality has long been linked to health, Air Testing with better quality generally meaning better health. It’s also been proven recently and over time that poor air quality (especially poor indoor air quality) can cause various health issues, weakens our immune systems, and even cause major health issues like cancer, heart disease, as well as causing us to have lower daily energy, and even age faster.
Other than most indoor air being polluted, the real problem is that most of us are spending upwards of 90% or more of our time indoors every day, constantly breathing in these pollutants. Where do the pollutants come from? Indoor air pollutants come from a variety of sources, including, house dust, insulation fibers, fine particles from sheetrock and other materials, mold spores, chemicals from cleaning products & solvents, even pollutants coming in from the outside through the A/C system.
Constantly breathing even smaller amounts of this indoor air pollution has been shown to lead to everything from chronic inflammation in the body to various infections, to sensitivities like allergies and asthma, and premature or accelerated aging. One reason why we often feel like we don’t have the energy that we used to is that many of the toxins that build in our indoor air can and do interfere specifically with the reactions that product ATP, or our main energy molecule in the cells. This lack of energy in the cells means our cells don’t have the energy to get rid of toxins or process nutrients as well, which means the cells tend to break down and die faster, which contributes to looking and feeling older.
And there many other more indirect ways that air pollutants kill our daily energy, such as lowering our immune system, reducing kidney and liver function which are necessary to keep our blood clean, etc. One rule of thumb to keep in mind: the cleaner the blood, the more energy you have-and the opposite is true also. Some toxins, such as carbon monoxide, actually compete for the spot that oxygen normally takes on our red blood cells. If less red blood cells are carrying oxygen, that can easily mean lower energy, and less vital nutrients to keep our cells working well.
When the body is full of toxins, the body’s actual repair mechanisms can be damaged, too, simply because many air pollutants interfere with the proper bonding of molecules and amino acids, which means weaker proteins (i. e. weaker hair, skin, nails, etc), and slower repair and healing because of less oxygen, etc. All of that means less effective repair, which frankly just makes us look and feel older. One particularly nasty toxins is Aflatoxin, a compound produced by mold. This pollutant is especially toxic and one of the most carcinogenic substances known to man. Even if you only have a little mold in your home, that little amount likely produces aflatoxins and once they build up in our bodies, they can cause liver damage, which inhibits the body’s ability to clean the blood, and we already explained what happens there: Dirty blood = poor cell health & decreased ability to repair = aging.
The obvious solution to this problem is to protect yourself and your family by using quality home air purification systems or portable air purifiers to remove the pollutants so they can’t bother us. And unfortunately, many people don’t realize that their air conditioner filters aren’t much help with regard to having safe, clean air in the home. This is because air conditioner filters 1) aren’t designed to stop chemical or gas pollutants, 2) aren’t able to trap the sub-micron size particles because the pore size is too large, and 3) all the pollutants stuck to the inside of the ducts after the A/C filter will continue to be distributed into your home or office every time the air conditioner turns on.