We are not only what we eat but what we breathe. Unfortunately, while we have control over the composition of the plate, the quality of Polish air still differs from EU standards and shortens our lives. Can you breathe with relief in four walls?
The strength of the breath
The words “breath is life” are by no means an empty slogan. We are able to withstand up to a month without food, several days without water, only a few minutes without air. Each of us performs 20 thousand. breaths, absorbing from 10 to 20 thousand. liters of air weighing about 16 kg. Why so much trouble? All because of oxygen – next to water and sugar, the third most important ingredient that our cells need to live.
It is oxygen that breaks down glucose, which is necessary for the production of energy, and thus to power the body. Every single cell that builds our bodies needs oxygen to function properly and not die.
Unfortunately, while the word “fresh” fit the air like a glove before the Great Industrial Revolution, with the advent of the Iron, Steam, and Coal Age, the word “contaminated” became more appropriate. And although from the 80s in Poland began to pay attention to the fact that bad air quality harms our health and the environment, and thus generates economic losses, it was only at the turn of the century that the topic of smog broke into the consciousness of Poles.
Our daily smog
What exactly is the cluster of words: “smog”, or smoke and “fog”, or fog, called by Władysław Kopaliński “smoky”? It is a phenomenon consisting in air pollution resulting from the mixing of fog with smoke and exhaust gases, and more specifically harmful chemical compounds and solid substances contained in them and getting into the atmosphere in the form of so-called suspended dust. The most dangerous of them are PM10 and PM2.5.
While PM10 particles reach the lungs and upper respiratory tract, PM2.5 pollen is so small that it enters the bloodstream, which can result in exacerbation of coronary heart disease, heart attacks and life-threatening arrhythmias, increased blood pressure and strokes . But that’s not all – the list of diseases and complications related to air pollution is really long and well documented. We can talk about more frequent infections and diseases of the respiratory tract (asthma, COPD, lung cancer), allergies, the risk of developing and developing neurodegenerative diseases (Alzheimer, Parkinson), and even cancers of the bladder and breast.
It has also been found that air pollution increases the incidence of intrauterine fetal death and reduction in birth weight, and may also impair fertility in both women and men. On the other hand, prenatal exposure to PAHs, nitrogen oxides and PM in children may result in a reduction in IQ, weaker psychomotor development, hyperactivity, difficulty concentrating, and play a significant role in the pathogenesis of autism.
According to the data of the European Environment Agency (EEA – European Environment Agency), the number of PM2.5 dusts alone in our country increases to around 43. premature deaths! That’s more than the death toll of car accidents!
Smog is harmful to all of us, but it is especially dangerous for seniors, people with chronic cardiovascular and respiratory diseases, diabetics, pregnant women and children.
A year-round problem?
The World Health Organization’s statistics are absolute for us – in terms of smog, we are a red spot on the map of Europe. The main cause of the high level of pollution in Poland is the high emission of dust from domestic heating devices, followed by road transport, industry and agriculture.
The belief that smog is a threat to us only in the fall and winter is a common myth. While in the heating season, i.e. in a moment, we are dealing with London-type smog, in summer we are threatened by another type of smog – Los Angeles-type smog, which is created primarily from compounds contained in car exhaust gases (nitrogen oxides) with the participation of solar radiation and other substances.
Moreover, public health experts say that the health damage caused by long-term exposure to inhaled polluted air in cities is likely to increase the death rate from coronavirus infection. Already in March, the international organization European Public Health Alliance warned against this. Although there are no studies yet that would unequivocally confirm the hypothesis of the correlation of increased mortality from the coronavirus with smog, northern Italy remains the largest focus of the disease in Europe: Lombardy and Emilia Romagna, where the level of air pollution is high.
In addition, the link between corona viruses and air pollution seems to be confirmed by outbreaks in previous years. Researchers who analyzed the 2003 SARS epidemic found that infected people who lived in areas with more air pollution were down 84 percent. more likely to die than those in regions with cleaner air!
The key question is: are we defenseless against smog? No – luckily, there are ways each of us can defend ourselves against the “invisible enemy.” In the case of being outdoors, we can protect our lungs using anti-smog masks, and on days when the concentration of pollutants is high, we can reduce the exposure time to a minimum.
However, in homes and apartments, we should ensure regular cleaning of the ventilation system, frequent and thorough vacuuming using equipment equipped with highly effective filters (HEPA), and rely on technology recognized as a preventive health tool, i.e. an air purifier. Especially that, as experts argue, due to the phenomenon of dust accumulation in closed spaces: the concentration of dust pollutants can be even higher in apartments than outside.
ABC of the purifier
How to choose the right air purifier? Due to the number of devices available on the market, it is not easy at all. First of all, we need to pay attention to several parameters. First of all, its performance, which indicates how much clean air it can deliver in 1 hour, working at the highest speed (CADR ratio). Secondly, the type of filter – most solutions have HEPA filters that enable effective, over 99 percent. filtration of low emission dust. So they get rid of the dust that is particularly dangerous for the human body: PM2.5 and PM10.
The most advanced are also able to filter mold spores, viruses, bacteria and house dust mites, which are the most common cause of allergic diseases in Poland. The third important parameter is the automatic operating mode, which means that the air purifier independently adjusts its settings to the current air quality (based on data from pollution sensors), and thus intelligently controls the speed. Finally, it is always worth choosing products from reputable brands that are a guarantee of quality.
These certainly include Philips air purifiers, the only ones with NanoProtect HEPA filters that remove even the smallest viruses and pollutants. [1]
Its “newest child” – the AC3858 / 51 air purifier has a NanoProtect HEPA filter that removes 100 times less pollutants than a standard HEPA filter. This means that it catches pollutants not 0,3 micrometers in size, but 0,003 micrometers, which is particles smaller than the smallest known virus. It is a natural filtration without ionization, which is based on mechanical filtration. The particles are trapped in the fibers through 4 mechanisms.
- Interception, small particles follow the air stream and, touching the filter fibers, adhere to them.
- Inertial impact, large particles are difficult to divert by air flow. They move in a straight line and hit the fibers.
- Diffusion, very small particles move randomly in the airflow and get trapped inside the microfibers by one of the above mechanisms.
- Electrostatic attraction, like magnesium on steel, very small particles will be attracted to the filter.
The filter principle depends on the particle size.
The product effectively reduces volatile organic compounds, including formaldehyde and toluene, as well as unpleasant odors. Anyway, we will be notified by the numerical air quality indicator, which indicates the level of PM2.5 particles, allergens and harmful gases. Another advantage of the purifier is its efficiency – the Philips purifier provides 610m3 of clean air per hour – in other words, in 20 meters you can breathe “fresh air” in just 5 minutes.
In addition, the operation of such a device is very simple thanks to intuitive operating modes: turbo mode, automatic mode, night mode and anti-allergic night mode. The automatic mode automatically adjusts the engine speed to the current pollution level, and we do not have to worry about the settings. In turn, the anti-allergic night mode works at the two lowest speeds, reacting to dust events without disturbing our sleep. The device is friendly to our pocket, because the energy consumption is low, we will pay only 2 cents for the work during the whole night. [2] The product is recommended by the Polish Society of Allergology and is certified by the National Institute of Public Health.
To sum up: the AC3858 / 51 purifier is a device that cares for our lungs 365 days a year, and “uninvited guests”: suspended dust, house dust mites, mold spores, viruses and bacteria are sent to the green grass.