Why is indoor air quality important?

4 minutes

Home is our safe refuge. Our little corner of the world where we can relax, enjoy time with our family and focus on our wellbeing. And now more than ever, we owe it to ourselves and the people we love to make home as healthy as possible. You may not have heard the term Indoor Air Quality (IAQ) before, yet it’s vitally important to your health and quality of life. Because while we all know breathing is essential, we generally don’t pay much attention to what we’re breathing. It’s just something we do 20,000 times a day, through all of life’s moments. The quality of the air we breathe is as important for healthy minds and bodies as clean water and nutritious food. Breathing well is living well.

So, how do we define “clean” air? Can’t we trust that we’re safe inside our homes? Doesn’t pollution happen outdoors? Remember, anything in the air outside will eventually make its way inside, and the air inside our homes contains its own pollutants: chemicals from cleaning products, viruses and pathogens, mold and mildew, mites, dust, pollen and volatile organic compounds (VOCs) from furniture and other man-made products. Even if you can’t smell them, they are there. The fact is indoor air can be five times dirtier than outdoor air, and since we spend up to 90% of our time indoors, eating, sleeping, working and just living, indoor air quality matters more than ever. What once seemed like a luxury is now a critical choice for people concerned about their total health.

Yes, bad air impacts your health

Taking a few deep breaths can relax and center you. However, the benefits go beyond comfort, with clean, fresh air proven to improve physical health and performance. It can even save your life. That’s because air pollution causes 7 million deaths worldwide annually – 60% of which are due to poor IAQ. Poor indoor air quality is linked to health problems like asthma, stroke, cardiovascular disease, COPD and other common but preventable conditions.

So, if inside air is unhealthy, how can we live without putting ourselves at risk? One solution is increased ventilation to improve air exchange. Research shows this can reduce airborne disease infection. You can also continually filter air, just like we filter the water we drink. Maintaining ideal air moisture is another element of breathing well since we know viruses can survive six times longer in air drier than 40% relative humidity.

Opening the window isn’t enough

Today’s tightly built homes reduce energy costs, helping families lower their utility bills. The downside is that indoor air doesn’t get exchanged with outside air as easily, which can lead to higher levels of indoor air pollution. Opening windows might seem like a solution, but it’s not a complete fix. You can’t control moisture levels, and pollutants and allergens breeze right through screens. Even air purifiers are a partial solution at best since they only treat the air already in your home.

A total solution then is one that addresses IAQ on multiple fronts: ventilation and filtration, purification and circulation, and heating and cooling with ideal moisture levels. And to be practical, the solution should merge ease of use with the peace of mind it delivers.

Breathe easier, live better

We’ve built our reputation over the past century by creating revolutionary technologies that help people live better lives and improve planet Earth’s health. And for the past 20 years, we’ve been developing advanced IAQ solutions so you can breathe better air in your home. We call this Breathe Well, and its suite of IAQ product solutions and smart technologies work together seamlessly, simply and effectively. Breathe Well is clean air – and better health – that you switch on like a light.

Our Breathe Well approach targets the “bad” particles in air, filters what you don’t want your family breathing and brings in clean air. This energy-efficient, low-maintenance system combines our proven nanoe™ X and Swidget technologies.

nanoe X purifies your air by pulling out toxins and removing odors. It even filters dust for a fresher, cleaner home.
Swidget is our family of patented modular smart devices that brings the whole system together, making it intuitive to use.

Only Panasonic can offer a complete solution that combines trusted products with proven technologies. For us, IAQ is more than an acronym, it’s a way to help protect what you value most: your family’s health.

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