Testing your indoor air quality is easiest with a consumer-grade smart monitor that tracks real-time data on pollutants like PM2.5 𝑃𝑀2.5, VOCs, and carbon monoxide. For a comprehensive assessment, you can supplement continuous monitoring with specialized DIY mail-in kits and professional environmental inspections.
Testing your home’s indoor air quality (IAQ) yourself is easiest with a multi-pollutant electronic monitor. Alternatively, you can use specialized mail-in test kits or look for physical warning signs like persistent musty odors, dust buildup, and humidity issues.
Poor indoor air quality can manifest through sudden allergy flare-ups, persistent musty odors, excessive dust accumulation, and visible mold. Health symptoms like unexplained headaches, fatigue, and throat irritation are also common indicators.
Find out about the weather and the air quality
Go to the Maps app on your iPhone. Zoom in on a map until the weather icon appears in the upper-left corner. The icon shows the current conditions for that area. In some regions, the air quality index (AQI) also appears in the lower-right corner.
To test your indoor air quality, use a continuous DIY air quality monitor or specialized test kits for specific hazards like mold and radon.
EPA's AirNow mobile app provides a simple interface for quickly checking current and forecast air quality information for planning daily activities and protecting your health.
You can tell the air in your house is making you sick if your cold-like symptoms (like sneezing, headaches, or fatigue) flare up shortly after entering your home and improve shortly after you leave. This phenomenon is often referred to as "Sick Building Syndrome".
Yes, you can check room temperature with your phone, but not directly using built-in phone sensors (as phones only measure their own internal battery temperature, not the room's air). Instead, you need to use a compatible app with an external smart sensor, a smart thermostat, or a specialized device.
"Good" (0 - 50): Air quality is excellent and poses little or no risk. "Moderate" (51 - 100): Air quality is acceptable; however, there may be some health concern for a small number of unusually sensitive individuals.
Yes, pollution can cause dizziness. Toxic particles and gases (like carbon monoxide, PM2.5cap P cap M sub 2.5𝑃𝑀2.5, and VOCs) enter your bloodstream and reduce the amount of oxygen reaching your brain. This directly affects your nervous system and can cause lightheadedness, headaches, nausea, and fatigue.
What are common signs that outdoor air quality is bad? Common signs include coughing and wheezing, shortness of breath, chest tightness, headaches, fatigue, allergy flares (sneezing, runny nose, itchy eyes), and skin irritation.
Here are 10 warning signs to watch for when checking out a house.
Detoxing your home's air requires minimizing the source of pollutants, increasing fresh airflow, and actively filtering the air.
Using an indoor air quality monitor is the easiest way to test the air in your home. These smart devices detect and measure pollutants in the air. They work around the clock and consistently monitor air for contaminants.
Hawaii is widely considered the easiest and healthiest state to breathe in. Consistently ranking #1 in the U.S. for air quality and lung health, it boasts the cleanest average air index (AQI). Its constant trade winds, low pollution, and high relative humidity minimize respiratory irritation.
While every home can benefit from air quality testing, certain situations make it especially worthwhile. Consider scheduling a test if: You or your family experience frequent allergies, coughing, or respiratory discomfort. You notice persistent odors or musty smells.
The main pathway of exposure from air pollution is through the respiratory tract. Breathing in these pollutants leads to inflammation, oxidative stress, immunosuppression, and mutagenicity in cells throughout our body, impacting the lungs, heart, brain among other organs and ultimately leading to disease.
Both short-term and long-term exposure to air pollutants can cause a variety of health problems. For people with asthma or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD/emphysema or chronic bronchitis), air pollution can make it harder to breathe, trigger asthma attacks, or cause wheezing and coughing.
Vertigo and dizziness are frequently linked to Vitamin D and Vitamin B12 deficiencies. Vitamin D plays a crucial role in calcium regulation, impacting the inner ear crystals (otoconia) that control balance. Vitamin B12 deficiency affects the nervous system, leading to neurological symptoms like imbalance and lightheadedness.
These policy recommendations are aligned with many of the goals identified in the 2022 California Extreme Heat Action Plan (EHAP). The state should consider a general maximum safe indoor air temperature of 82 degrees Fahrenheit (27.8 degrees Celsius) for residential dwelling units.
Yes, air pollution is a major cause of increased mucus production.
For most people, 73°F is slightly too warm for optimal sleep, as sleep experts recommend a cooler environment between 60°F and 67°F to signal the body to rest. However, personal comfort varies—older adults may actually sleep better in the 68°F to 74°F range.
Yes, it is perfectly okay—and highly recommended! Sleeping in a cold room (ideally between 60∘F60 raised to the composed with power F60∘F and 67∘F67 raised to the composed with power F67∘F) supports your body's natural drop in core temperature. This drop is a vital cue that triggers melatonin production, allowing you to fall asleep faster and achieve deeper, more restorative rest.
Phones with built-in thermometers primarily include the Google Pixel Pro series (8 Pro through 10 Pro) for non-contact object/body temperature, and rugged phones like the Ulefone Armor 28 Ultra/29 Pro, which feature advanced thermal imaging cameras. These devices use specialized sensors to detect infrared heat.
Hypothermia, or low body temperature, is a condition that occurs when your body's temperature drops below 95 degrees Fahrenheit (35 degrees Celsius). The average normal body temperature is 98.6 F (37 C). Hypothermia is a medical emergency.