Air Conditioning Can Make You Sick: Here's How to Avoid It

Air conditioning is important for modern survival and existence, especially within hotter climates. At homes, workplaces, and even shopping malls, air-conditioning makes our life bearable through constant coolness. Nevertheless, contrary to what is normally assumed, air-conditioning could be a source of health problems when poorly maintained. Dry skin, allergies, headaches, or respiratory problems are common among people who suffer because of poorly maintained air conditioners. Such cases are normally attributed to dirty air filters, old air conditioner parts, and lack of maintenance.

Dust, bacteria, and molds can seriously affect the health of human beings through the AC system. Clogged air filters do not trap significant particles, leading to indoor pollution. Poorly maintained AC systems can also carry airborne diseases triggering allergies and asthma. Hence, changing old spare parts of the air conditioner, together with proper maintenance, becomes really an important aspect in the whole process. Finding AC spare parts dealers in Dubai and using high-quality AC air filter will really go a long way in enhancing air quality and health issues. Try these measures so that you enjoy the temperatures provided by air conditioning without endangering your health. 

Here are some of the ways air conditioning can make you sick: Here's How to Avoid It

To Keep Your AC System in Great Shape

Taking care of your air conditioning system improves health and prevents health-related problems. Over time, dust, dirt, and allergens can accumulate in the system, which deteriorates air quality. This is what you can do to help maintain your AC: 

Get Regular Maintenance Work Done: Call in an expert for inspection and servicing at least once or, preferably, about twice a year. That ensures efficient running and cleanliness even for these systems.

Clean or Change Filters: Air filters trap dust and other airborne particles, but a clogged or unwashed filter is detrimental to air quality. Depending on the frequency of use, change and/or clean filters every one to three months. 

Inspect for Blockages and Leaks: Make certain that ducts and vents have no leaks or blockages so that air can flow properly without contamination. 

Always Keep Your House Tidy

Cleaning the house makes for better indoor air quality, thus reducing the chance of falling ill from air conditioning. Dust, dander, and pollen will only accumulate in your living space and aggravate allergy symptoms and respiratory problems. Here is how you can get rid of air-borne contaminants around the house: 

Vacuum Your Carpets and Furniture: Consider getting a vacuum with a HEPA filter to remove dust particles and allergens.

Dust and Wipe Surfaces: Use a damp cloth to clean surfaces to make sure that dust particles do not go airborne anymore. 

Wash Your Bedding and Curtains: These are among the items that can trap dust and allergens, so wash them often to enhance your hygienic environment.

Preventing Mold and Mildew

Mold and mildew love damp areas, and they can propagate inside your respiratory tract via the AC-roots cause respiratory illness and other allergic reactions. To prevent molds' establishment: 

Check For Moisture Buildup: Check for water leaks or condensation in your AC unit.

Use A Dehumidifier: Dehumidifiers will help keep moisture in check and prevent mold growth in damp areas.

Clean Vents and Ducts: Mold spores that accumulate in your AC system should therefore warrant a strict adherence to thorough cleaning of the vents and ducts. 

Temperature Settings

Cold air conditioning could be a root cause of distress for your well-being. Sudden changes in temperature within and outside can literally stress your body, thus leading to cold symptoms, headaches, and muscle stiffness. Some liberating ideas connected with the above:

Set The Temperature Comfortably: The normal parameter within the house ranges from 72-78°F (22-26°C). Avoid setting lower, else you might cool to shivering.

Dress Appropriately: In cold conditions, wear some light clothes inside to keep yourself warm without unnecessary reliance on AC. 

Gradually Change The Temperature: Alter the temperature gradually to give your body time to catch up, not all at once.

Control Humidity

Humidity levels are critical in determining quality indoor air. It causes mold growth when it is too much or results in dry skin, irritating sinuses, and respiratory difficulties when it is less. Here are ways to maintain optimal humidity:

Hygrometer: This is an instrument used in measuring the internal humidity of your home. The humidity reading should be kept at 30-50%. Ensure Proper Ventilation: Open windows as much as possible and utilize exhaust fans to limit extra moisture build-up. Use Humidifier or Dehumidifier Based on Place: Use a humidifier to add moisture if it is less or dehumidifier if there is excess humidity in that specific environment.

Take Breaks and Get Fresh Air

Staying in air-conditioned rooms for too long may cause dryness in the throat, skin, and eyes. Prolonged exposure to air conditioning may lead to a weak immunity system as well. In this case, you can do the following:

Go Outside for a Period: A few minutes will not hurt, and it helps with breathing in fresh air to let the body adjust to its natural temperatures.

Open Your Windows When Possible: Allow outside fresh air to serve as replacement air and old air to be renewed from inside if weather permits.

Outdoor Activities: Regular exposure to sunlight and fresh air helps to improve all-around well-being.

Hydration

Constant cooling effects becomes dehydrated in the process. Dry air causes a dry throat, skin and becomes a little irritating to the respiratory tract. Thus, you can keep moisturizing yourself in the following ways:

Drink Plenty of Water: For a minimum of 8 glasses of water per day, keep your body hydrated.

Moisturize: Apply Moisturizers to help minimize dehydration of the skin during air conditioning.

Eating Moisture-rich Foods: Cucumbers, watermelons, and oranges contain water; eating them helps to keep the body hydrated.

Utilize a Humidifier

A humidifier would assist in keeping moisture levels in the air at a proper state if the ambient air has become unacceptably dry because you have been running your air conditioner continuously. Thus, a humidifier would help:

Prevents Dry Skin and Irritation: Adding moisture to the atmosphere prevents dry skin and eye irritation.

Improve Breathing Comfort: It eases the throat and makes one breathe again.

Promote Healthy Respiratory systems: This favors perfect humidity levels within the context of keeping your nasal passages and airways moist, thus minimizing infection chances.

Use Air Purifiers

Air purifiers are great for purifying the indoor air from airborne dust, pollen, and bacteria. The advantages of using air purifiers are as follows:

Reducing Allergen: Air purifiers trap the airborne allergens which induce respiratory problems.

Purified Air: This removes the pollutants from the air you breathe, leaving it pure and healthy.

Better Sleep: Clean air enhances sleep quality by reducing allergens causing congestion and breathing difficulties.

Use HEPA Filters.

HEPA filters or High-Efficiency Particulate Air can trap solid airborne particles in dust, bacteria, and other allergens. In fact, HEPA filters work wonders when it involves improving indoor air quality. The Benefits of HEPA Filters: 

Efficient Air Filtration: They all make the air free from even the smallest particles.

It Reduces Allergy Symptoms: For allergic persons, HEPA filters can be a great help to reduce the airborne allergens.

Long-Term Health Benefits: Clean air is important for respiratory well-being and general well-being.

Conclusion

Air conditioning may become a necessity, but ignoring maintenance definitely comes with dangerous health hazards. Polluted indoor air due to unclean filters, aged AC parts, and mold growth can trigger allergic reactions, respiratory conditions, and infections. So maintenance of air conditioning, such as regular cleaning and replacement of parts, is a must to be safe. Therefore, investing in quality AC air filters to trap dust and allergens lessens the risk of respiratory complications. It is also important to check AC spare parts dealers in Dubai to ensure that you have access to authentic parts, which in turn enhances the efficiency and longevity of your air conditioning system.

To summarize, air conditioning should comfort, not pollute. By ensuring that regular maintenance of your air conditioning is performed and faulty components are changed in time, you ensure fresh, clean, and healthy air. Do not wait for health problems to knock at your door; take measures to keep your air conditioning system properly working. Seasonal servicing, genuine spare parts, and maintenance of filters are the golden rules for keeping cool and healthy.