In times of haze and other serious air conditions, people are encouraged to stay indoors because logically thinking; indoor air is cleaner than outdoor air, as it is shielded from the polluted outdoor air. But still, whether the air is polluted or not, us city people are spending most of our time indoors, to protect ourselves against harsh weather conditions. Little do we know that the air indoors could be a few times worse than the outdoor air.
Think this: the air outdoors is constantly circulating, whether it is polluted or not; because of the presence of wind, weather, and natural air purifiers - the trees and greeneries. The indoor air, on the other hand, is shielded and this means low ventilation or in some cases, none at all. The air in a particular room will remain the same or possibly worse, but it definitely will not be any fresher.
In our own society, here in Malaysia, we tend to spend most of our time indoors too: we work indoors, we eat indoors, we sleep indoors. Therefore, it is crucial for our people to realize the presence of the Indoor Air Quality issue. The best place for us to start to get to know the importance of having good indoor air quality is our own homes, because home is our sanctuary; it is the place where we seek refuge. We feel the safest when we are in our homes. But is it really the safest place for us, now? Without us knowing, dangers are hidden inside out homes.
Like the ice berg, only one ninth of the tips is visible. The rest, the bigger danger, lurks underneath the surface of the sea which is hidden from out eyes. The ice berg theory applies the same to the Indoor Air Quality issue - we can't really see the danger of polluted indoor air; until when it finally hit us.
Why we are so happily naive, thinking that indoor air is cleaner than the outdoor air?
My guess is that we really can't sense or feel how polluted indoor air could be, that's why we are so ignorant.
For example;
1. Through our eyes, we can see how polluted outdoor air is: the blurry visions due to haze; due to wastes products released into the open air by factories. Our eyes may water, our throats irritated by the harmful particles in the haze. We feel uncomfortable.
2. Through our noses, we can smell the smoke from a vehicles' exhaust. It hurts our noses to smell the exhaust smoke and we react instinctively - stay far away from the vehicle.
Whereas for indoor air, most of the pollutants are colourless and odourless. That's why we always assume indoor air is cleaner and more purified than the outdoor air. We can't see the danger of polluted indoor air.
Before we start telling people how polluted the air in their homes are, we must first make them realize the existence and significance of "Indoor Air Quality" - how? By conducting researches through readily available softwares / equipments. The outcome of that research serves as a fact, or a proof on how polluted indoor air in that particular space actually is. Perhaps through these black-and-white results, people will finally realize the importance of Indoor Air Quality.
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