Elderly, Singles Suffer Worst Air Pollution in Their Homes

Published on 2018/03/04 | Source

Air pollution is at its worst in the homes of elderly people and those who live alone, a study suggests.

According to eco-friendly home appliance manufacturer Coway on Tuesday, indoor air quality tests of 16,220 households across the country have found that ultrafine particle concentration is the highest in one-person households at 47.7 ㎍/㎥.

Next came elderly households (37.7 ㎍/㎥), homes with grown-up children (35.3), homes with secondary schoolchildren (33), homes with elementary schoolchildren (31.6), and homes with toddlers and infants and newlywed homes (29.5).

The pattern suggests that air quality improves markedly the more anxious householders are about the health of their dependents.

The WHO air quality guideline for particulate matter is 20 ㎍/㎥.

"Singles are often indifferent to indoor air quality because they spend a lot of time outside the home, and it seems that older people get up earlier and start moving about and don't open their windows because they think the outside air is worse", Coway speculated.

Children also run around the house and stir up dust, but their mothers may be more sensitive and vacuum and open windows more, Coway said.