An analysis of the air we breathe daily
One of the last meetings of the medical-scientific themed series "The Time of Health" organized by the Italian newspaper "Il Corriere della Sera" featured a discussion among some experts on air pollution.
The panel discussion, titled "Which Air Are We Breathing?", attended by Donatella Barus and Alessandro Vitale of Fondazione Umberto Veronesi (one of Italy's leading cancer research associations), Pier Mannuccio Mannucci, professor of Internal Medicine at theUniversity of Milan, and Alessandro Miani, president of the Italian Society of Environmental Medicine, took stock of the Italian and European situation regarding the presence of hazardous pollutants in outdoor and indoor air and the steps to take to protect health.
The analysis focused on the area of northern Italy and, in particular, the Po Valley, which, due to its morphological conformation with closed mountains and poor air circulation, is among the most polluted areas in Europe, according to data released in 2021 by The Lancet.
Pollution causes half a million deaths each year
Data in hand, 500. 000 people from causes related to air pollution, and the meeting organized by the Courier aimed to highlight some steps to be taken to reduce these risks, including frequent ventilation of indoor environments, avoidance of high temperatures and humidity, use of suitable suction tools, immediate removal at the onset of any mold (carriers of bacteria harmful to health), paying attention to the cleaning products themselves (which by their constitution contain volatile organic compounds) and removal of dust by means of suitable tools of good quality (source: Italian Society of Environmental Medicine).
The importance of indoor air, both at home and at work
The argument, of course, applies not only to home environments, but also to work environments, where people spend most of their days.
It is first important to identify the types of pollutants in the atmosphere in order to take appropriate measures, starting with adequate ventilation of the environment and ending with the filtration of coarse and fine dust, fumes and toxic vapors.
The tools to clean up the air in manufacturing plants.
The ideal solution involves the detection and removal of pollutants directly at the point of release, to prevent them from escaping into the atmosphere in even minute percentages and coming into contact with the respiratory tract. Localized pollutant removal tools such as booms, benches and suction walls can make the difference between a healthy and a toxic work environment, obviously in symbiosis with ventilation and filtration systems calibrated to the type of harmful substance to be removed.
The concept of limit value, outside and inside establishments
The World Health Organization has established maximum levels of particulate matter, nitrogen dioxide and other toxic substances that can be present in the atmosphere without endangering public health. There are also parameters for indoor environments in manufacturing plants, and as of 2014, limit values have been set (e.g., 1.25 mg/m³ for non-carcinogenic fine particulate matter). In any case, recirculated air must also be taken into account, which may still contain pollutants from outside, so the use of filtration tools becomes even more important.