Your Home and Office, A Breath of fresh air?

Adults breathe in something like 35 gallons of air a day, taking some 20,000 breaths in a 24hr day, most of them in our home. While there are numerous agencies out there attempting to regulate the quality of outdoor air, and to some extent our air in the office, the health of the air in our home has been pretty much left up to the homeowner. Common sources of indoor air pollutants in the home such as dust and mold, but also VOCs-volatile organic compounds-in paints, household cleaners, as well as pesticides, lead dust or asbestos particles in older homes, and any number of other less obvious culprits -- like air fresheners, scented candles and, well, your clothing. Products stored in garages and basements often attribute to higher VOCs.

Seattle Indoor Air Issues Mold issues, Allergies and Asthma

• About 400,000 Washington adults – one in ten women and one in fourteen men – currently have asthma
• About 120,000 Washington youth are currently affected by asthma 
• The percentage of our state population with asthma is steadily increasing - the prevalence of asthma has increased significantly for adults and households with children between 1999 and 2003 
• Washington’s asthma prevalence has been identified by CDC as one of the highest in the nation – both adult and youth prevalence are significantly greater than national averages  
• About 9% of adults have asthma, between 7-10% of middle/high school-aged children have asthma, and one in ten households with children of any age have a child with asthma.