How Indoor Air Quality Affects Productivity and Mental Health
Keeping your home’s air clean is so important
Unfortunately, our daily lives are full of things that can impact both our productivity and mental health. This includes social media, current events and toxic work environments. Another element that can deeply affect both mental health and one’s ability to be productive is indoor air quality.
You are probably aware of the impact that outdoor air quality can have and may be less familiar with the affects of indoor air quality. Those affects are real and are possibly impacting you more than you realize.
Why indoor air quality is important
We have known for quite some time that outdoor air quality has all sorts of implications on one’s health. It can have an effect on one’s respiratory system (especially if a person has asthma) as well as a person’s cardiovascular system. Pollution in the air can actually increase the chances of having a stroke or a heart attack.
What some people are less familiar with is how indoor air quality (otherwise referred to as IAQ) is affecting us. However, considering that we spend up to 90% of our time indoors, we have to take this into account.
The air that we breathe while we’re indoors actually contains four to five times more pollutants and allergens than outdoor air does. Unfortunately, most of the homes that we live in are tightly sealed, which makes it near impossible for air to circulate properly. This means that mold spores, dust, germs and additional airborne allergens and contaminants get stuck inside, thus leading to an unhealthy environment.
Similar to outdoor air quality, poor indoor air quality can also cause respiratory problems, allergies and asthma. Indoor pollutants are also not good for already existing cardiovascular issues.
Indoor air quality, productivity and mental health
Poor indoor air quality is having a huge impact on both productivity and mental health. In fact, certain studies have indicated that poor indoor air quality can negatively affect cognitive function and cause issues with one’s memory. Additionally, breathing in air with high levels of pollution increases the chances of someone experiencing both depression and anxiety.
A Harvard University study actually discovered that employees who work in a space that is well ventilated and has healthy indoor air quality had higher cognitive function than employees who work in a space that is not well ventilated.
Therefore, ensuring that your IAQ is healthy is critical to your overall physical and mental health.
Improving your indoor air quality
While polluted indoor air can clearly have a negative impact on our daily lives, the good news is that there are ways to improve this air.
Adding an air purifier, humidifier or air filtration system to your home or office space will help kill harmful organisms such as bacteria, mold and viruses. In fact, an air filtration system can remove up to 99.97% of the harmful particles that pass through them, which decreases the number of particulate contaminants that are in the air you breathe.
Rucci Oil can help improve the air quality in your Staten Island, Brooklyn or Manhattan home. We also offer services in certain parts of New Jersey.
Contact Rucci Oil today to learn more about our selection of indoor air quality products.