Day after day, the same routine persists: leaving the comfort of home for the office, taking a lunch break outside, only to return home in the evening. In reality, we spend nearly 90% of our lives indoors, primarily within our own residences. However, the reality of indoor air quality is often alarming, with pollution levels five to ten times higher than outdoor air\u2014a sobering realization.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Three main sources contribute to this pollution. Firstly, excessive building insulation, driven by energy-saving concerns, creates a tight seal that hinders air circulation. This lack of ventilation concentrates pollutants, moisture, and mold indoors. Secondly, the behaviors of occupants, using an abundance of scented candles, incense, and chemical household products, contribute to the deterioration of air quality. Lastly, the choice of modern construction materials, such as cement and synthetic materials, replaces traditional materials like wood and natural stone, impacting indoor air quality.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Today, in buildings, a multitude of different materials accumulate, requiring careful consideration of their impact on health. These volatile organic compounds, invisible and insidious, contribute each year to the premature death of thousands, causing issues ranging from simple headaches to severe respiratory problems.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
For those seeking renovation alternatives mindful of air quality, materials such as lime, hemp, flax, wood fiber, and glass wool are favored. Wood, as a traditional construction material, and emerging alternatives like raw earth are also recommended. For finishes, clay, solvent-free paints, and cork for flooring offer healthier choices for inhabitants.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The daily routine of leaving home for work, taking a lunch break outside, and returning in the evening highlights our substantial indoor existence, constituting nearly 90% of our lives. However, the concerning reality of indoor air quality, often five to ten times more polluted than outdoor air, poses a serious issue. Three primary sources contribute to this pollution: excessive building insulation hindering air circulation, occupant behaviors involving scented products, and the use of modern construction materials replacing traditional ones. The accumulation of various materials in buildings, containing volatile organic compounds, leads to health problems from headaches to severe respiratory issues. Despite the known adverse effects, Switzerland lacks standards, fostering inaction. Experts at HEPIA advocate for awareness and innovative practices, prompting initiatives like HEPIA’s healthy living spaces program and the THQMAT initiative by the Geneva government, promoting healthy materials in real estate. Guides, subsidies, and expert support aim to create healthier living spaces, suggesting materials like lime and wood for those mindful of air quality in renovations.<\/p>","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":3282,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[183,179,180,147,142],"class_list":["post-3284","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","tag-air-quality","tag-ap","tag-gene","tag-ho","tag-rea"],"aioseo_notices":[],"yoast_head":"\n