I think this will be an apt time to talk about indoor air pollution. What are the different sources of indoor air pollution? And how can you protect your health from them and fight against them? Come, let's find out all of this, in today's video. A US-based report of 2019 had stated that more than 6 Lakh Indians died because of indoor air pollution. The diseases from this type of pollution are respiratory. Pulmonary diseases. Like stroke, lung cancer, asthma, those diseases which are often caused by outdoor air pollution. But the good news is that, though you can't control the outdoor pollution, but you can control the pollution inside your homes to quite an extent in simple and easy steps.
Come, let's get to know the sources and how to control them. You might not have to worry about the first and largest source perhaps because most of you live in cities where LPG cylinders are used. But in India, around 60% of the people, especially those living in rural areas, often use wood, charcoal and cow dung as fuel for cooking even today. The cooking fuels cause incomplete combustion which releases PM2.5. Which is very harmful to the lungs. Thankfully, for the last few years, through the Ujjwala scheme, the use of LPG cylinders has increased across the country. And the indoor pollution from this source has been reduced. If you know someone who still uses these cooking fuels, please advise them against it.
The second source is something that can be easily found in the kitchens of the people living in cities. That is a non-stick pan with Teflon coating. Generally speaking, Teflon is safe. But when it is heated for more than 300°, the Teflon compound breaks down and harmful chemicals and gases are released. It is not very difficult to avoid this. If you have a Teflon pan, do not pre-heat it when it's empty. Do not use it over extremely high heat. You can get its alternative, the ceramic pans which are not made of Teflon. The third source of indoor air pollution is your vacuum cleaner. Who would've thought? The machines that you use to clean your house are the ones who make it dirtier.
Many vacuum cleaners, especially the old ones, suck in the dirt, dust and bacteria from the floor, and throw it back into the air. This was discovered by Australian researchers in 2012. That some vacuums instead of making things cleaner, spread more dirt. The same logic is applicable for brooms as well. The dust in the ground is spread into the air by the brooms. Which might then go into the respiratory system of the people. Friends, the simple solution to avoid this is to use the latest vacuum cleaners which have the High-Efficiency Particulate Air filters. The HEPA filters. When you buy a vacuum cleaner check whether it has the HEPA filter or not. These filters apparently capture 99.9% of dirt, dust and bacteria. The fourth source is the chemicals present in your personal care products.
The air fresheners, perfumes, baby lotions and artificially scented candles which have synthetic fragrances in them. Synthetic fragrances are very harmful. There are petrochemicals in them. Benzene derivatives and Aldehydes which can cause cancer, birth defects and nervous disorders. The solution is very simple. Use such personal care products which do not have any synthetic fragrances.
The next source of indoor air pollution is paint. The paint that goes on the walls. You heard it right. Often, when the paint is wet. Many paints have VOCs which are very harmful to you. They may cause respiratory problems, headaches, nausea and your central nervous system may also be affected. Again, the solution is very simple. Use those paint companies which do not have VOCs. Or have minimal VOCs. Today, you will find many paint companies which sell VOC free paints. Second, when you get your walls painted, ensure that the windows remain open until the paint dries. And keep the paint cans tightly closed to prevent chemicals from leaking.
The next source of indoor air pollution is something very common. Unfortunately, it is not so easy to avoid it. Mosquito coils, candles and incense sticks. You heard it right, friends. The things which are heavily used in our day-to-day lives. Especially, the candles and incense sticks. You would've read about combustion in school, friends. There are 5 main types of combustion. Let's focus on the first two. Incomplete combustion and Complete combustion. In incomplete combustion, the combustion process is not fully completed. It means that unburnt soot particles are released.
Combustion where the frame is of yellow colour. Like that in candles and incense sticks. And the blue frame is of complete combustion which is purer. Unburnt soot particles are not released. And fewer harmful gases are released. The logic is simple, friends. Whenever there is incomplete combustion, harmful gases will be released. Which are very harmful to your health. Not only candles and incense sticks, but also hookahs, cigarettes and wherever you find incomplete combustion. Obviously, in cigarettes and hookahs, there are many other harmful chemicals as well.
Which are even more harmful to your health. Friends, cigarette smoke not only affects the health of the person smoking but if smoked indoors, the health of all the people in that house is also affected. Because the smoke from the cigarette spreads all over the house. It's called Second-Hand smoking. You might have already heard about this. But, friends, did you know that after Second-Hand smoking there's also something called Third-Hand smoking. When the ash residue from smoking falls on the furniture it can stay there for many days and release harmful gases.
This third-hand smoking is as harmful as second-hand smoking according to several pieces of research. I talked about mosquito coils as well. They also release particulate matters. The solution here is that these things; mosquito coils, candles and incense sticks, avoid using them as much as you can. And when you have to use them, open the windows. Ensure proper ventilation. So that the air keeps moving and the smoke from them can go out of the house.
While talking about ventilation, always remember one thing, friends, ventilation is a very important weapon not only against indoor air pollution but also to fight against coronavirus. Several research papers have said that if you keep your house well ventilated, keep the windows and doors open regularly so that the air can pass through, it reduces the spread of coronavirus to a large extent inside your house. The chances of your being infected by coronavirus are reduced a lot. Many research papers have stated that the spread of coronavirus and its infection has been seen indoors mostly.
The infection rate outdoors is low. After ventilation, another important weapon is the sunlight. You might be amazed to know this, friends, that direct sunlight kills coronavirus. Not inside the human body but on the surfaces and in the air. When the direct sunlight falls on them. The scientists had previously assumed as such. But the latest research has proven that the intensity of killing coronavirus that direct sunlight has is 8 times as intense as was previously assumed. So open the doors and windows and let sunlight come in. Let it fall on your furniture and the floor and kill the germs and viruses.
I hope that you would have learnt important and new things in this video. Share this video so that your friends and family can also get to know it. And get to safeguard their health. And can truly Stay Home and Stay Safe.
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