Info about House Plants & Your Home's Indoor Air Quality

The subject of indoor air pollution (IAQ) isn't without some controversy. Indoor air quality is an evolving issue; it's important to keep informed about continuing developments in this area.

The following question may be asked of physicians and other health professionals.

Question: Do my house hold plants help with my home's Indoor Air Quality?

This article tells us NO!

IAQ and Plants
The idea that plants clean indoor air is a sad, continuing saga fed by bad science, commercial interests and wishful thinking.

http://www.buildingecology.com/articles/iaq-and-plants

And this article tells us YES!

Best air-filtering houseplants, according to NASA. If these plants are good enough to filter the air of the space station, then surely they're good enough for your home.

http://www.mnn.com/health/healthy-spaces/stories/best-air-filtering-houseplants-according-to-nasa

Vangocleaning.com recommends a common sense approach. Household plants may or may not impact our air quality, but what will is, when whether permits, opening of your windows and doors to bring fresh air in, venting out stovetop cooking and, when using cleaning supplies, trying to use more of a green product with low volatile organic compounds* (VOCs).

As for those plants that may help, we say why not? They look great anyway. Now you decide....

*Volatile organic compounds (VOCs): Some VOCs are dangerous to human health or cause harm to the environment. Anthropogenic VOCs are regulated by law, especially indoors, where concentrations are the highest. Harmful VOCs are typically not acutely toxic, but instead have compounding long-term health effects. Because the concentrations are usually low and the symptoms slow to develop.

-- Robert Deacon
Vangocleaning.com