AP Beijing, China reports of thick brown clouds of soot, particles, and chemicals stretching from the Persian Gulf to Asia is a threat to health and food supplies in the world. These brown clouds contribute to glacial melting, reduces sunlight by up to 25%, and is creating extreme weather conditions that effect agriculture production.
Although these huge plumes have darkened 13 mega-cities in Asia, these enormous cloud masses can move across continents in three to four days illustrating this is not just a regional urban issue but a global one.
This report noted that health problems associated with particle pollution, which includes cardiovascular and respiratory diseases are linked to nearly 350,000 premature deaths in China and India every year.
In another Blog, it was pointed out that conditions in certain parts of California lead to premature deaths that out numbered those related to traffic fatalities. Bottom line is the particle pollution in these areas becomes trapped inside homes and can be up to 100 worse than the outside pollution. There is a tendency to feel "safe" from this pollution when inside the home but the EPA has pointed out the danger in that assumption.
What is staggering are the number of deaths related to pollution and that little is being done to educate the population on what they can do to "manage" the issue within the home. And unfortunately there is a certain amount of skepticism regarding what one can do inside to improve air quality because of the bad rap air cleaning products have received from a few bad manufacturers.
The reality is there are quite a few companies that provide smart solutions and will listen and tailor the solution to fit the need of the homeowner. Researching is a whole lot easier today with the Internet and it should include a trip to the EPA.gov web site to read what they are saying about indoor air pollution.
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