Energy Efficiency in Your Home Reduces Health Problems

Which do you believe is healthier: indoor air quality or outdoor air quality? Most believe that indoor air is healthier than outdoor air; unfortunately this is not always the case.

Many pollutants can actually be produced inside the home. These pollutants can come from your home’s structure, paint, carpet, furnishings or many other sources. To make things worse, if you fail to ventilate your home properly to dilute the levels of indoor pollutants, they can accumulate to levels high enough to cause health and comfort issues for you and your family.

According to the U.S. ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY some of the reasons that houses make occupants sick are mold, mildew, chemicals, malfunctioning combustion equipment, lack of or poor ventilation, peeling lead-based paint and radon. The most common ailments reported from homes with these hazards are

• Allergies
• Asthma
• Lung and other cancers
• Lead poisoning
• Hormone irregularities
• Respiratory ailments

Once a home is energy efficient many of the health problems disappear. Additional benefits are lower energy bills, air quality and comfort is improved and moisture and pests are reduced.

There are several ways to improve your home’s ventilation and energy efficiency. According to the ALLIANCE TO SAVE ENERGY check your homes first line of defense, the outer shell.  Check the roof, walls, floors, windows and doors. It pays to deal with air leaks first to get maximum savings from your heating and cooling systems and other energy efficient measures.