Learn more about protecting children's health
October 2023 • 2 min read
The United States celebrate Children’s Health Month in October, with the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) inviting visitors to its website (www.epa.gov) to learn more about protecting children’s health as they live, learn and play.
A webpage entitled What You Can Do to Protect Children from Environmental Risks gives valuable information for any parent, with tips on protecting children against: pesticides; chemical, lead and carbon monoxide poisoning; contaminated fish; radon; too much sun; mercury; storms and floods; too much heat; avoiding ticks; and stopping mosquito bites.
There are also two other topics included in the full list. These relate directly to AirGuard’s mission of creating safer, smarter and healthier indoor environments through demonstrable, data-driven improvements in indoor air quality (IAQ). These two topics cover how to:
Breathe Easier and
Promote Healthier Communities.
It is vital that children enjoy low levels of air pollution as they breathe considerably more than adults in relation to body size, and pollution has a greater effect on their developing bodies. So let’s take a brief dive into what the US EPA has to say.
Help Children Breathe Easier
The EPA’s recommendations here are devoted more to ambient (outdoor) air, with indoor air focused on eschewing smoke and keeping the home as clean as possible. The EPA makes a strong case for freeing homes of dust, mould and pet dander, which can all trigger asthma attacks and allergies, as well as lead to more serious cardiovascular issues over the longer term.
Promote Healthier Communities
Air in schools is included in this section. Apart from urging everyone to take steps to expand green spaces and limit automobile pollution, the EPA calls on us all to:
- Promote green building.
- Use Indoor Air Quality Design Tools to create healthy school environments.
Let’s take a brief look at how AirGuard’s data-driven solutions for IAQ optimization can be of immense help to green building in general, and to schools in particular.
MEASURE, MANAGE, MITIGATE
This is AirGuard's mantra.
First, we MEASURE the major parameters of indoor air, focusing for schools on Particulate Matter pollution (PM’s 10 and 2.5, which can enter the bloodstream) and Carbon Dioxide, excess levels of which can lead to headaches, feeling unwell, and seriously affect learning outcomes.
We then MANAGE the air through constant monitoring and dashboard visualizations, using smart devices to automatically engage fans or heating, ventilation, air-conditioning (HVAC) systems to keep air quality parameters within strictly defined ranges.
Concurrently, we MITIGATE any air quality issues through a potential combination of simple building modifications with our engineering partners, HVAC inspection and/or refurbishment, and the use of AirGuard’s proprietary Active Germ Suppression (AGS) system to inactivate bacteria and viruses.
If you have any concerns about the quality of the air your child is breathing, we’re just a phone call away. Call us any time!