Wanna breathe better? Bring in some plants!

By mudlark • March 15th, 2008

There are certain plants this time of year that we all want to avoid – the yellow pollinators, and other things that cause asthma and allergy flare-ups. But there are other plants that will actually improve indoor air quality. And when the EPA tells us that indoor air tends to be 5-100 times more toxic than outdoor air, improving air quality indoors suddenly becomes a very big deal. So, if you want some plants that’ll help your home (or office or cubicle…), try one of these:

Spider plants (reduces formaldehyde)
Fig trees (reduces formaldehyde)
English Ivy (helps tackle the impact of petrochemicals)
Aloe vera (eliminates emissions from most toxic sources)
Chrysanthemum (reduces formaldehyde, benzene, and ammonia)
Chinese evergreen
Bamboo palm
Peace lillies (removes alcohols, acetone, trichloroethylene, benzene and formaldehyde)

Comments(4) Allergies, Health, asthma

Comments

By Houston Air Guy on August 8th, 2008 at 2:38 pm

Plants are great for removing toxins out of the air. They are also emitting oxygen into the air so they richen the air you breath too.

Big issue with indoor air and allergies is dust, those pesky dust mites living in it and mold that can grow in it if their are moisture issues, releasing mold spores. Pollens accumulate in the dust too.

Your home ventilation system, heating ducts and a/c are all circulating the air around your home. An air filtering or air cleaning system tied into you duct work can help to clean the air as it cycles around the house. Then your plants can do the rest to keep it fresh and oxygen rich.

By scott on February 10th, 2009 at 2:35 pm

Excellent points spider plants are very good for improving air quality. NASA has studied plants and air quality as a way to improve air on future projects like space stations. There are however things that you need to do to avoid problems like mold which could actually make allergies worse. House plants for allergies recommends never using wicker to with plants at these are often problematic to water damage.

By Joey Pebble on April 8th, 2009 at 10:05 am

I think it is kind of a no brainer that plants will help make the air in your home healthier. However I did not know that specific plants had particular health benefits. That was a very interesting list