So this idea came up during debating whether or not to install a humidifier. First of all, the answer to that is never, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever. Below are some tips to have CF friendly air. It will include some accomodating, but it WILL increase your quality of life.
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<P>Note, these are my personal observations as someone with CF as well as a degree in biochemistry and molecular biology ;0</P>
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<P>1) Per the above, install a DEHUMIDIFIER. They can be cheap on craigslist. They take the water out of your air. That water will be "grey water." It's toxic to drink, but can be used for plants. Basically, in the process of condensation, dangerous chemicals are also taken out of the air. Hooray.</P>
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<P>Dry air slows mold and bacteria growth. Critical for CFers.</P>
<P> </P>
<P>2) Remove carpet. Just do it. Carpet is a bed for mold and dust. Dust is not dirt, it is the excretion of dust mites. It is toxic. Dust will collect on a hard floor, but it can be swept daily and will not accumulate. If you insist on a carpet, steam clean it occaisonally. Dont' worry about shoes, that adds dirt. Again, the problem is DUST and MOLD in the carpet, not dingyenss or dirt. I'd recommend against vinyl or laminate because of glue. I'd also recommend against wood because of expense and possibility of wood rot. Your best bet is ceramic tile. Grout is anti-mold and does not rot. Because no glue is involved, there will be no chemical secretions from it. Ceramic is an all natural made material. Clay, dirt, water. </P>
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<P>3) Put in real house plants. Trees if you can. Trees absorb toxic chemicals in the air, and recycle them through the soil. They are amazing organisms. Look up studies of indoor air quality. It can be many times more toxic than outdoor. Trees will change that for you. Air filters are great for large particles, but smaller chemicals (specifically organics) that are exuded by your house or apartment building materials (think tar roof materials, drywall, glue, plasters, paint, etc) will not be greatly reduced by air filters. Fill your house will plants! </P>
<P> </P>
<P>4) Air filters, as mentioned above, will not get small organics as much, but are great for particle pollution. Dirt, larger volitile organics, and even mold can be filtered depending on what filter you have. Ozone purifiers are NOT to be left on. They are great for killing mold and germs, but make sure the house is evacuated, and then the air is circulated for a whole day if you use an ozone purifier. That is usually considered an industrial cleaner. </P>
<P> </P>
<P>5) If you live in a rural area with lots of trees outside, consider keeping your windows open to circulate air. Indoor air quality is worse than outdoor. if you live near the city, you probably shouldn't do this.</P>
<P> </P>
<P>6) be discriminating when decided what chemicals to put in your air. Painting should be done with windows open and fans blowing. NEVER use bug spray. Just don't. Also be careful with what kind of cleaners you are using. Lye based, oil based cleaners, and others can be very volitile. I have 1 universal cleaner. That is bleach. Bleach is somewhat "good" for lungs of people with CF. It is analogous to doing hypersaline solution. Remember, CF is lack of cloride receptors, so we lack chlorine in our lungs. I'm NOT suggesting to start inhaling chlorine, but I would say because of our affinity to it, is the best cleaner to use. It is also great to clear your lungs by swimming at your local chlorinated pool. My thought is that although chlorine, at high concentrations, will burn your epithelial tissue completely, at low concentrations a thick mucous membrane will protect the epithelial layer as well as help secreting mucous.</P>
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<P>This means that the only good air spray to use is lysol air spray. none of that fragranty chemically crap.</P>
<P> </P>
<P>Candles and incense, in my book, are highly frowned upon. That would include any fragrance sprays. </P>
<P> </P>
<P>7) when you exercise, be mindful of what exercise you are doing, and where. taking deep breaths is critical to people with CF. However, damage incurred will usually be in the deeper layers of your lungs. What are the ramifications of this? Basically, you don't want to exercise around pollution. Carbon monoxide pollution from cars is probably the most likely to contribute to lung lacerations, so if you jog in the city and take deep breaths, you will be damaging the damaged areas of your lungs. Not good. On the other hand, if you are exercising indoors with a moldy carpet or rotting wood, that can allow bacteria access to your the area of your lungs which can be most immunocompromised. So perhaps a clean gym is a good option. Rubber is mold and dust resistant. jogging in residential areas as opposed to high traffic areas is also a good idea. If you have a treadmill or have to be on oxygen or something, and your indoor air quality is poor, open a window and turn on a fan and circulate the air while you exercise. Consider the previous tips to make your indoor quality better ESPECIALLY if you do most of your exercising indoors. </P>
<P> </P>
<P>8) Don't let people that smell like smoke, or have smoked that day, into your house. Don't let roommates smoke in your house. Be a ***** bitch if you have to, I don't care. Lose your friends, break up with your husband/wife. Smoke will STAIN carpets, furniture, and YOUR LUNGS. 3rd hand smoke (the "smell" of smoke that someone carries in their car, clothes, or dwelling) is DANGEROUS. This is your life, these are your lungs, and nothing takes priority over that in my book. I have broken up with people because they wouldn't kick their habit. I have ended friendships. I have quit jobs. I have gone home early from parties, avoided certain bars, whatever. Harsh, but necessary. Cigarettes are your number 1 enemy. </P>
<P> </P>
<P>9) finally, temperature. Keep your house cold. The AC dehumidifies your house, taking water and chemicals out of your air. Cold air also slows bacteria and mold growth. It helps you cough up mucuos. It is healthy. I'm talking 65 degrees and below. I grew up in arizona and was used to up to 120 degrees, and i forced myself to love the cold air because i know how healthy it is. So I keep my AC on in the winter (I know live in texas where it does not get below freezing). I wear sweaters instead of turning on the heat, or reducing AC. I pay extra electricity for what I know is to be healthier. </P>
<P>Running the heater will not dehumidify your house. It will simply put hot air into circulation. Keep that in mind if your house would be below freezing and you would have to keep the heater on to survive on a comfortable level. But try to keep it as cold as possible.</P>
<P> </P>
<P>A notible exception to this is those with exceptionally weak immunities, such as children, or those that are constantly fighting infection. However!!!! There is a way around this. What compromises your immunity is not the coldness in the air, but it is your decrease in core temperature. In other words, you can wear a sweater, but breathing cold air can reduce your core temperature to immunocompromising levels. The way to increase your core temperature follows: hot showers/baths, and drinking hot liquids. If you wear warm clothes, and constantly are drinking hot liquids, and taking a nice warm bath when you get really cold, you can stabalize your core temperature throughout the day. That way you can sustain that wonderfully healthy cold air in your lungs. </P>
<P> </P>
<P>If you run a dehumidifier, then it will cost less electricity to cool your house, even though the dehumidifing unit will itself put off heat. This is because taking water out of your air reduces the specific heat of the air, meaning less energy to increase or decrease the temperature of that air. This is why wet climates have less temperature fluctuations, and deserts will be hot during the day, and cold during the night. The exception to this rule may be in small college dorm room. The heat put off may exceed the cost savings of reducing the specific heat of your house, but it's still worth it for health reasons.</P>
<P> </P>
<P> </P>
<P> </P>
<P>Okay, I meant that to be comprehensive, but not exhausted. And I hope it helps!</P>
<P> </P>
<P>Note, these are my personal observations as someone with CF as well as a degree in biochemistry and molecular biology ;0</P>
<P> </P>
<P>1) Per the above, install a DEHUMIDIFIER. They can be cheap on craigslist. They take the water out of your air. That water will be "grey water." It's toxic to drink, but can be used for plants. Basically, in the process of condensation, dangerous chemicals are also taken out of the air. Hooray.</P>
<P> </P>
<P>Dry air slows mold and bacteria growth. Critical for CFers.</P>
<P> </P>
<P>2) Remove carpet. Just do it. Carpet is a bed for mold and dust. Dust is not dirt, it is the excretion of dust mites. It is toxic. Dust will collect on a hard floor, but it can be swept daily and will not accumulate. If you insist on a carpet, steam clean it occaisonally. Dont' worry about shoes, that adds dirt. Again, the problem is DUST and MOLD in the carpet, not dingyenss or dirt. I'd recommend against vinyl or laminate because of glue. I'd also recommend against wood because of expense and possibility of wood rot. Your best bet is ceramic tile. Grout is anti-mold and does not rot. Because no glue is involved, there will be no chemical secretions from it. Ceramic is an all natural made material. Clay, dirt, water. </P>
<P> </P>
<P>3) Put in real house plants. Trees if you can. Trees absorb toxic chemicals in the air, and recycle them through the soil. They are amazing organisms. Look up studies of indoor air quality. It can be many times more toxic than outdoor. Trees will change that for you. Air filters are great for large particles, but smaller chemicals (specifically organics) that are exuded by your house or apartment building materials (think tar roof materials, drywall, glue, plasters, paint, etc) will not be greatly reduced by air filters. Fill your house will plants! </P>
<P> </P>
<P>4) Air filters, as mentioned above, will not get small organics as much, but are great for particle pollution. Dirt, larger volitile organics, and even mold can be filtered depending on what filter you have. Ozone purifiers are NOT to be left on. They are great for killing mold and germs, but make sure the house is evacuated, and then the air is circulated for a whole day if you use an ozone purifier. That is usually considered an industrial cleaner. </P>
<P> </P>
<P>5) If you live in a rural area with lots of trees outside, consider keeping your windows open to circulate air. Indoor air quality is worse than outdoor. if you live near the city, you probably shouldn't do this.</P>
<P> </P>
<P>6) be discriminating when decided what chemicals to put in your air. Painting should be done with windows open and fans blowing. NEVER use bug spray. Just don't. Also be careful with what kind of cleaners you are using. Lye based, oil based cleaners, and others can be very volitile. I have 1 universal cleaner. That is bleach. Bleach is somewhat "good" for lungs of people with CF. It is analogous to doing hypersaline solution. Remember, CF is lack of cloride receptors, so we lack chlorine in our lungs. I'm NOT suggesting to start inhaling chlorine, but I would say because of our affinity to it, is the best cleaner to use. It is also great to clear your lungs by swimming at your local chlorinated pool. My thought is that although chlorine, at high concentrations, will burn your epithelial tissue completely, at low concentrations a thick mucous membrane will protect the epithelial layer as well as help secreting mucous.</P>
<P> </P>
<P>This means that the only good air spray to use is lysol air spray. none of that fragranty chemically crap.</P>
<P> </P>
<P>Candles and incense, in my book, are highly frowned upon. That would include any fragrance sprays. </P>
<P> </P>
<P>7) when you exercise, be mindful of what exercise you are doing, and where. taking deep breaths is critical to people with CF. However, damage incurred will usually be in the deeper layers of your lungs. What are the ramifications of this? Basically, you don't want to exercise around pollution. Carbon monoxide pollution from cars is probably the most likely to contribute to lung lacerations, so if you jog in the city and take deep breaths, you will be damaging the damaged areas of your lungs. Not good. On the other hand, if you are exercising indoors with a moldy carpet or rotting wood, that can allow bacteria access to your the area of your lungs which can be most immunocompromised. So perhaps a clean gym is a good option. Rubber is mold and dust resistant. jogging in residential areas as opposed to high traffic areas is also a good idea. If you have a treadmill or have to be on oxygen or something, and your indoor air quality is poor, open a window and turn on a fan and circulate the air while you exercise. Consider the previous tips to make your indoor quality better ESPECIALLY if you do most of your exercising indoors. </P>
<P> </P>
<P>8) Don't let people that smell like smoke, or have smoked that day, into your house. Don't let roommates smoke in your house. Be a ***** bitch if you have to, I don't care. Lose your friends, break up with your husband/wife. Smoke will STAIN carpets, furniture, and YOUR LUNGS. 3rd hand smoke (the "smell" of smoke that someone carries in their car, clothes, or dwelling) is DANGEROUS. This is your life, these are your lungs, and nothing takes priority over that in my book. I have broken up with people because they wouldn't kick their habit. I have ended friendships. I have quit jobs. I have gone home early from parties, avoided certain bars, whatever. Harsh, but necessary. Cigarettes are your number 1 enemy. </P>
<P> </P>
<P>9) finally, temperature. Keep your house cold. The AC dehumidifies your house, taking water and chemicals out of your air. Cold air also slows bacteria and mold growth. It helps you cough up mucuos. It is healthy. I'm talking 65 degrees and below. I grew up in arizona and was used to up to 120 degrees, and i forced myself to love the cold air because i know how healthy it is. So I keep my AC on in the winter (I know live in texas where it does not get below freezing). I wear sweaters instead of turning on the heat, or reducing AC. I pay extra electricity for what I know is to be healthier. </P>
<P>Running the heater will not dehumidify your house. It will simply put hot air into circulation. Keep that in mind if your house would be below freezing and you would have to keep the heater on to survive on a comfortable level. But try to keep it as cold as possible.</P>
<P> </P>
<P>A notible exception to this is those with exceptionally weak immunities, such as children, or those that are constantly fighting infection. However!!!! There is a way around this. What compromises your immunity is not the coldness in the air, but it is your decrease in core temperature. In other words, you can wear a sweater, but breathing cold air can reduce your core temperature to immunocompromising levels. The way to increase your core temperature follows: hot showers/baths, and drinking hot liquids. If you wear warm clothes, and constantly are drinking hot liquids, and taking a nice warm bath when you get really cold, you can stabalize your core temperature throughout the day. That way you can sustain that wonderfully healthy cold air in your lungs. </P>
<P> </P>
<P>If you run a dehumidifier, then it will cost less electricity to cool your house, even though the dehumidifing unit will itself put off heat. This is because taking water out of your air reduces the specific heat of the air, meaning less energy to increase or decrease the temperature of that air. This is why wet climates have less temperature fluctuations, and deserts will be hot during the day, and cold during the night. The exception to this rule may be in small college dorm room. The heat put off may exceed the cost savings of reducing the specific heat of your house, but it's still worth it for health reasons.</P>
<P> </P>
<P> </P>
<P> </P>
<P>Okay, I meant that to be comprehensive, but not exhausted. And I hope it helps!</P>
