Living Healthy & Green

What are you breathing inside your home? People spend 90% of their time indoors where organic pollutants can be two to five times higher than outdoors. You can improve your indoor environment by reducing pollutants and safety hazards inside your home.

You can keep your home healthier by following these 7 Principles.

1. Control moisture in your home. A damp house provides a nurturing environment for mold, roaches, rodents and mites, all of which are associated with asthma.   
   • UGA Cooperative Extension Tips for preventing mold
   • EPA guide to moisture control
2. Keep your home clean.
• UGA Cooperate Extension Green Cleaning Recipes
3. Keep pests out of your home.Studies show a relationship between exposure to mice and cockroaches and asthma in children.
• eXtension ways to Bug proof without chemicals
• Integrated Pest Management
4. Reduce safety hazards in your home. Falls are the leading cause of unintentional death in the home.
   • UGA Cooperative Extension 3 tips to a safer home
   • Home Safety Council
5. Eliminating contaminants in your home. Exposure to contaminants like lead, radon gas, carbon monoxide, environmental tobacco smoke and pesticides are often higher indoors than outside.
   • Exposure to Radon is responsible for over 20,000 deaths a year. There is a simple solution.
   • Lead can be found in peeling paint, dust, soil and drinking water. Lead poisoning may cause a range of health effects, especially in children under 6 years of age.
   • Hundreds of deaths each year are due to Carbon Monoxide poisoning
   • Exposure to Secondhand Smoke can cause asthma in children
6. Bring fresh air into your home – ventilate!
• Ventilation is an important part of healthy housing.
7. Maintain your home.  A well kept house is at lower risk for mold, pest problems, contaminants, and tripping and falling hazards.
•  UGA Cooperative Extension Home Maintenance Checklist

You can learn more about the pollutants inside your home by taking a room-by-room tour

For more information contact Pamela Turner.