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Plants Improve Poor Air Quality and Benefit Health

A simple plant can improve air quality by a third; cleaning the air of toxins and increasing oxygen levels, reducing stress and improving all-round health
Health, Home, Lifestyle - 12 August 2010   Download IconContent available for download:  
Audio | Interview with Jonathan Read| Login to Download

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  News Hooks:

Latest research reveals that up to 90% of our time is spent indoors either at home, school or in the workplace, where the air quality can be as much as 12 times more polluted than outdoors.

The average worker took 6.4 days off through sickness last year with poor air quality in modern offices contributing to 40% of absenteeism. Sick leave cost employers £16.8 billion last year, with over 180 million sick days being taken.

Poor air quality in modern offices can cause Sick Building Syndrome (SBS), which can lead to headaches, fatigue and asthma. A recent study has found that plants can reduce SBS by a quarter and reduce other cold related illnesses by more than 30%.

. Introduction:

Latest research reveals sick leave cost employers £16.8 billion last year, with over 180 million sick days being taken. Poor air quality in modern offices is partly to blame as it contributes to nearly half of all absenteeism, causing health concerns such as headaches, fatigue and asthma. Nowadays, most of our time is spent indoors where the air quality can be as much as 12 times more polluted than outdoors. A simple plant can improve air quality by a third; cleaning the air of toxins and increasing oxygen levels, reducing stress levels and improving all-round health.

So why are we not taking full advantage of the health benefits associated with plants?

Joining us to discuss this further is Jonathan Read from the not-for-profit organization Plants for People.

. Suggested Questions:

What does the research show about how air pollution affects people in our area?

What are the health concerns related with poor air quality?

What does the report reveal about improving our health when indoors?

In what ways do plants improve air quality?

How else can plants improve our general well being?

Where can we find out more information?