Chasing Clean Air

Air Purifier Review: IQ Air Healthpro Series

What's a big city gal to do in order to get a breath of fresh air?

For starters, get a good air purifier.

Regulating industry to decrease air pollution is no easy task and can't be counted on. Take for instance today when the head of the EPA, Lisa Jackson, stepped down amidst difficulty navigating the treacherous Congressional halls of coal and big oil lobbyists making it difficult to pass meaningful laws when it comes to our lung health. (Though to Ms. Jackson's credit, she finalized a rule doubling the required fuel mileage of cars and light trucks to be phased in over 13 years.)

So when it comes to our lung health, we must take charge.

For those of us living in big cities where cars and trucks burn fossil fuels at the lung level, and for those living in the country where pollens and pesticides are the thing to avoid, and most everyone who experiences one degree or another of indoor air pollution--mold, dust or your neighbor's cigarette smoke--I suggest getting a good air purifier and placing it in the room most used.

Swiss-made IQ Air Purifiers were the choice at Hong Kong hospitals during the SARS epidemic and now its advanced technology is available for you, too. The filtration system is said to be effective against ultra-small particles known to cause cardiovascular and lung disease.

A few months ago, my IQ Air Healthpro Plus arrived.

Fortunately, I was able to take advantage of the fact that in September 2012, the IQ Air Healthpro Series was updated to clean 25% more air, 32% quieter at all fan speeds, and with 38% longer laster filters.

It emits no ozone, no ions, no UV or chemicals. Mold, pollen, and dust are said to be filtered out with an efficient, well-sealed system, making an indoor air room 99.5% clean.

Bottle Bright: Easy Way To Clean Water Bottles

How do you clean your hard-to-reach-inside water bottles? I've been using a long brush scrubber and vinegar but along comes a new product by Clean Ethics called Bottle Bright that claims to clean all hard to reach surfaces that may harbor mold and bacteria.

Bottle Bright may be handy at home and a life-saver on a long camping trip.

A non-toxic, biodegradable tablet you can easily put in a water bottle, add warm water, let stand five minutes to dissolve and shake in order to clean. Sit ten more minutes for tough stains. Then discard "old" water before refilling up with clean. For every Bottle Bright you buy, the owners of Clean Ethics are giving away equal amounts of Bottle Bright tablets to poor countries in need of clean water.

Carbon Tax For Clean Air and Fiscal Cliff Discussed Everywhere But Congress

The Clean Air Act and our tax system could get a welcomed boost with a Carbon Tax on fossil fuel producers and users. It's under discussion on NPR and The New Yorker. I wish the idea were discussed in Congress, too! I'm throwing in my clean air hat to say, Yes! to a carbon tax because it makes clean air, climate change, fiscal, clean energy, and better health sense.

A modest carbon tax would take care of half the current deficit.

Paying For It by Elizabeth Kolbert at The New Yorker is about potential benefits of Carbon Tax.

On NPR's "To The Point" today a great discussion underway Is The Carbon Tax An Idea Whose Time Has Come? Guests discuss benefits and (drawbacks) of a carbon tax on the fiscal cliff and our environment. I heard conservatives acknowledge the health care costs (dollars and lives) of continuing with unabated coal. Pleasant surprise to hear from conservative think tanks considering clean air benefits to a carbon tax.

From KCRW's web site on carbon tax topic:

Environmentalists have long championed a carbon tax, imposed not just on gasoline, but on all fossil fuels, from coal used to generate electricity to diesel fuel used to power heavy equipment, as a way to address climate change. Now it’s winning the support of conservative think-tanks and even some oil companies, as a way to address the budget deficit. Is the tax a smart way to avert both global warming and the fiscal cliff? If so, then why isn't the Obama White House proposing it, and why is Congress so reluctant to consider it? Has hurricane Sandy changed any minds?

Guests:

• Elizabeth Kolbert: New Yorker, @NewYorker
• Bob Inglis: Energy and Enterprise Initiative
• Marlo Lewis: Competitive Enterprise Institute, @ceidotorg
• Dan Lashof: Natural Resources Defense Council, @Dlashof

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Bug Repellent by Intelligent Nutrients is Non-Toxic

Certified Organic Bug Repellent Perfume Serum and Perfume Spray by Intelligent Nutrients uses natural ingredients to keep mosquitoes, gnats, and flies away. Introduced in 2011, Intelligent Nutrients products--combined with bug repellent clothing like Exofficio--in my opinion is the safest way to deal with travel to areas heavy on the bugs. Costa Rica. Bonaire. Bowron Lakes. Areas I've been to or desire to go without concern for bugs and diseases they may carry means I will use Bug Repellent Perfume Serum and Perfume Spray.

I recently wrote about West Nile Virus on the rise particularly in Los Angeles County due to infected mosquitoes. So walking at dawn or dusk, I'll add Intelligent Nutrients bug repellent along with my Exofficio "insect shield" hoodie.

Suggestions for use from Intelligent Nutrients,

"Apply the USDA Certified Organic Bug Repellent Serum to exposed skin to help reduce exposure to mosquito bites that may carry viruses such as West Nile. Apply along hairline to keep gnats at bay. Disperse in closets and drawers to protect garments and linens from moths and other destructive insects. TSA-approved sizes perfect for travel fit conveniently into your purse, diaper bag, tackle box and/or golf bag to travel with you anywhere pesky insects might be."

About Certified Organic Bug Repellent Perfume Serum and Perfume Spray 

100% free from herbicides, fungicides, insecticides and pesticides—such as DEET (a pesticide commonly used in conventional repellents). According to the President’s Commissioned Cancer Panel Report 2008-2009, “exposure to these chemicals has been linked to brain/central nervous system (CNS), breast, colon, lung, ovarian (female spouses), pancreatic, kidney, testicular, and stomach cancers, as well as Hodgkin and non- Hodgkin lymphoma, multiple myeloma, and soft tissue sarcoma.” IN’s non-toxic formulas are also free from synthetic fragrances and petroleum and plant powered by the very own bug resisting oils they produce as their own survival mechanism; making them great insect repellents for animals and humans.

I trust the Intelligent Nutrients brand; and have been using their products daily on my face for years. To read more click here.

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