This September, we celebrate Pulmonary Fibrosis Awareness Month. At Zehnder America, we deal with air quality issues on a daily basis and understand just how important having clean and healthy air is to anyone with pulmonary fibrosis or other lung diseases.
Pulmonary fibrosis is the medical term for scarring in the lungs. This scarring can occur from a number of outside factors. Some of these can be controlled, such as drug use or environmental pollution, while other factors such as autoimmune or genetic disorders are much harder to avoid.
Human lungs are delicate. Particles of pollution material only 10 micrometers in diameter, invisible to the human eye, are enough to cause severe damage to lung tissue. Overexposure to these particles can cause scarring in the lungs, no matter how healthy you are otherwise. This means areas with high levels of smog, chemicals, or smoke particulates in the air are all risky areas. You can’t exactly stop breathing, so how can you protect yourself and your family?
If you or any of your family are at risk of pulmonary fibrosis, you should take care to ensure that your home has good air quality. You know that air pollution is a problem–but it doesn’t go away just because you’ve gone inside. In fact, the Environmental Protection Agency has found that air pollutants collect indoors at concentrations of up to 100 times those of outdoors. Since today’s houses are built to be airtight, there is nowhere for indoor pollutants to go without proper ventilation.
Think about the people in your family who spend most of their time indoors. This can include elderly relatives, people with lung diseases, or young children. These groups are the most at risk for complications from air pollution, including pulmonary fibrosis. Simply being indoors is not a reliable way to keep them safe.
How can you make sure your family is protected? Ensuring clean air in your home is a good start. Zehnder Comfosystems offer undeniable health benefits by providing filtered outdoor air to your home and making sure that every room is well-ventilated. Levels of indoor contaminants are continuously reduced as the air inside the house is exchanged with filtered outdoor air. Even the humidity can be controlled, so your home will always be a comfortable and safe environment.
If you notice any symptoms of pulmonary fibrosis in yourself or in your family, see a doctor right away. These symptoms include shortness of breath, coughing, and fatigue. However, you should also check that your home is a safe place. At Zehnder America, we want you to be sure your home’s air is safe before any symptoms may appear, which is why we offer home air check kits.
Are you ready to take the next step toward your home’s safety? Contact Zehnder America today to learn how we can help you ensure clean air quality in your home.