Plants: Nature's Air Purifiers
We are exposed everyday by any hundreds of indoor chemicals . Carbon monoxide, formaldehydes and benzene are the most common and dangerous pollutants we come in contact with, in the home and workplace.
The building industry has been so efficient at making air-tight structures in the home and office that people are getting sick. There has been a frightening rise in asthma, "sick-building" syndrome, and other airborne pollutant-causing ailments, generally attributed to energy-efficient construction.
The risk posed by indoor pollutants are comparable to those associated with exposure to chemicals or radiation in industial settings, observed Dr Anthony V. Nero, Jr., a leader in the study of indoor air pollution.
Because plants have a large surface area and exchange water and gases with their surroundings, they have a unique ability to tackle many environmental problems. In particular, plants can:
- Reduce levels of carbon dioxide, which can accumulate in buildings from the breathing of its occupants and the by-products of heating systems and electrical equipment.
- Increase relative humidity, which should be between 40% and 60% RH for maximum human comfort.
- Reduce levels of certain pollutant gases, such as formaldehyde, benzene and nitrogen dioxide.
- Reduce airborne dust levels.
- Reduce air temperatures.
- Reduce background noise levels.
In short, every plant is a miniature air-conditioning system!
They make buildings look more attractive and welcoming.
Perhaps the most obvious reason for installing plants and one that is backed up by research. A postgraduate study carried out in a London hospital in 1995 provided clear evidence that people do react more favourably to a building when it contains plants than when it does not. Hospital visitors were asked to respond to a descriptive choice test using twenty pairs of bipolar adjectives (quiet v noisy, cheerful v gloomy etc.). The results showed that when plants were present in the reception area of the hospital, users perceived it to be:
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17% more ornate
17% more interesting
17% more cheerful
16% more welcoming
15% more relaxing
11% less stressful
11% more expensive
11% tidier
8% quieter
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Indoor Plants For Better Breathing
In the initial NASA studies a dozen varieties of common interior plants were placed in sealed, plexiglass chambers. Formaldehyde, a toxic chemical with the greatist exposure on humans, was introduced. Within 24 hours, the plants--Philodendron, Spider Plant and Golden Pothos-- removed 80% of the formaldehyde molecule from the chamber.
Plants Can Clean The Air in Your Environment
NASA research has consistently shown that living and flowering plants can remove several toxic chemical from the air to make it a more pleasant place to work-- where people feel better, perform better.
Those plants in your office or home are not only decorative but scientist are finding them to be surprisingly useful in absorbing potentially harmful gases and cleaning the air inside modern buildings.
For all the right reasons-- Say Yes to Plants.
Songbird Plant Lenders can help you "Stay in Tune With Nature...!"
