For the functioning of the body, food, water and air are needed first of all. Without food, we can live for some, less without water. Always need air!

Taking advantage of time, we choose food very carefully. Culinary recipes have existed for more than one thousand years and are constantly being improved. See how many articles are about food at the School of Life. 

In recent years, we also pay attention to water. We clean, buy in bottles. Yes, and tap water, despite the growing criticism, you can drink. From the puddle we do not drink!

But we breathe air, as if from a puddle. What is there! Forced!

And what is there in this air puddle around us?

First of all, it is nitrogen, oxygen, argon and carbon dioxide. Nature has always maintained their balance. Smells, even unpleasant, were also environmentally friendly. Dust – natural. Nature perfectly coped with the destruction of all evil spirits. 

The last decades of rapid scientific and technological progress, in addition to amenities and comforts, have “presented” mankind with a variety of harmful chemical compounds.
Nature can no longer cope with such a load, and we get a decrease in immunity, various allergies and other inadequate reactions of the body. Our immune system now spends 80% of its resources on neutralizing harmful environmental factors. And also does not always cope.

What makes us happy with progress? It: 

Carbon monoxide. Sources of atmospheric emissions: road transport, coal and oil burning, steelmaking. Causes suffocation, affects the cardiovascular system, disrupts the circulatory system. Formaldehyde. Sources of atmospheric emissions: furniture, automobile transport, chemical production. Irritating to mucous membranes of eyes and nose. Nitric oxides , mainly due to the secondary reactions of nitrogen compounds, are also associated with respiratory and cardiovascular diseases: Nitric oxide. Sources of atmospheric emissions: gas stove, motor vehicles, coal and oil burning. Easily converted to nitrogen dioxide. Nitrogen dioxide Source of air: formed in sunlight from nitric oxide. At the same time, ozone is formed in the troposphere, which is a pollutant in the lower atmosphere. When it enters the upper atmosphere — the stratosphere — nitrogen dioxide destroys the ozone layer of the earth. Nitrogen dioxide causes bronchitis, lowers the body’s resistance to respiratory diseases. Ozone. Sources of atmospheric release: formed in sunlight during the reaction of nitrogen oxides and hydrocarbons. Irritating to mucous membranes of eyes, exacerbates asthma. Hydrocarbons. Sources of atmospheric release are unburned gasoline vapors. In sunlight, it reacts with nitrogen oxides and forms a photochemical smog. PAN (peroxyacetyl hydronitrate) . Sources of atmospheric release: formed in sunlight during the reaction of nitrogen oxides and hydrocarbons. Irritating to mucous membranes of eyes, exacerbates asthma. Nitric acid. Source: Nitrogen dioxide reactions in the atmosphere. In high concentrations it leads to acid rain. Causes respiratory illness. Sulphuric acid. Source of entry into the atmosphere: formed in sunlight during the reaction of sulfur dioxide and hydroxyl ions (OH-). Causes respiratory illness. Nitrous acid. It enters the atmosphere as a result of reactions between nitrogen dioxide and water vapor. Causes respiratory illness. Arsenic. Sources of atmospheric emissions: coal and oil furnaces, glass production. It causes the destruction of the autonomic nervous system, paralysis of the circulatory system, metabolic disorders. Exposure over an extended period of time can lead to lung and skin cancer. Benzene. Sources of air emissions: refineries, car exhausts. Exposure for a long time can cause leukemia. Chlorine. Sources of atmospheric emissions: chemical production. Causes mucosal tissue irritation. Hydrogen chloride Sources of air emissions: waste incineration plants, chemical production. Irritating to mucous membranes of eyes and lungs. Hydrogen fluoride. Sources of air emissions: plants for the production of mineral fertilizers, steelmaking. Irritating to skin, eyes, mucous membranes. Hydrogen sulfide. Sources of atmospheric emissions: oil refineries, treatment plants, pulp and paper production. Causes nausea, irritates eyes. Manganese. Sources of atmospheric emissions: metallurgical production, power plants. Exposure over time can cause Parkinson’s disease. Sulphur dioxide. Sources of atmospheric emissions: oil and coal combustion, steelmaking. Sulfur dioxide causes acid rain. Reduces resistance to respiratory diseases, irritates the mucous membranes of the eyes. 
 This dry but scary list is far from complete.

The chief state sanitary doctor of Russia Gennady Onishchenko admitted that: “The number of deaths due to air pollution is 21 thousand per 22.4 million people. This is 7% of the annual deaths of Russians. “

Do you want to hide from all this behind plastic windows? Will not work! All the same, all this rubbish will penetrate the apartment when airing. Inside, there are also its own sources of pollution: walls, ceilings, furniture (especially from particleboard) carpets, as well as all kinds of artificial coatings, varnishes and paints, household chemicals. Organic matter, mold, fungi and bacteria, the sources of which are insects, domestic animals and ourselves.

And many of us did not even think about it! Just do not always feel good.

Well, breath caught in fear? Then do not breathe yet. In the next article I will tell you how to clean the air. And not with the help of ionizers, the obsessive advertising of which offers them for all occasions. They will make the chemistry listed above only more harmful!