A recent study found indoor air pollution, caused by bacteria, chemicals, and fungi that exist in your home can be more of a danger to human health than pollution found outdoors. That means you and your family could face serious health risks if any of these substances get trapped in your air duct system and spread into every room
A good way to help prevent this is to clean the air ducts in your home regularly. If not, you could face serious long-term health problems.
Need more convincing? Here are some of the consequences of not keeping your air ducts clean.
Sinus Infections
Sinus infections are no joke. They’re painful, and if left untreated can lead to more serious medical problems down the line. Dirty air ducts are more likely to trap things like bacteria, debris, and chemicals.
Once your air conditioning or heating is turned on, these substances can make their way into any room of your home.
Inhaling them through the nose could cause damage to your sinuses. This can lead to inflammation and become infected.
By keeping your air ducts clean, you’re significantly reducing the chances of any such particles getting stuck inside.
Asthma Attacks
If you’re asthmatic, dirty air ducts could become a nightmare. Dust, mold, and pollen are some of the most common things to enter air ducts. Exposure can trigger an asthma attack.
If you notice that your asthma symptoms crop up more often indoors than outside, it’s possible the indoor air quality has something to do with it. In that case, it’s a good idea to have your ducts cleaned and inspected.
Allergic Reactions
Just like with asthma, dust, mold, and pollen found in dirty air ducts can trigger an allergic reaction. Depending on how much of these things are blowing into each room, attacks can be more severe and last longer.
Again, if you notice that you’re suffering the symptoms more often while indoors, it may be a sign the ducts need to be professionally cleaned.
Respiratory Infections
Among the most dangerous things that can be found in air ducts are viruses, bacteria, and fungi.
Inhaling any of these in can lead to a respiratory infection, which can cause breathing problems in addition to a number of other symptoms. This can severely affect children, the elderly or anybody with compromised immune systems that enter your home.
