Lately in Thailand, there has been a rising awareness on the quality of the air we breathe. A lot of urbanites check the quality of the air first thing in the morning, but we cannot fully avoid breathing some pollutants in – we can only try our best to “minimise” the unclean air intake and get our bodies an immunity.

Although mostly invisible to the naked eye, the air we breathe is full of particulate matter (PM); chemicals, soil, smoke, dust or allergens, containing sulfates, nitrates, ammonia, black carbon, and mineral dust. These particles can be small enough to penetrate deep into our lungs, or even pass into our bloodstream, leading to much more serious lung and heart problems over time.

Dr. Tal Friedman, Head of Naturopathic and Research & Development Specialist at Chiva-Som International Health Resort, gives some highly beneficial advices for us to safeguard our health amidst the fine dust situation.

• Changing air filters – Make sure to keep the air filters at home, and at work if possible, clean. Replace when necessary and see if HEPA or better filters are available for your HVAC system. Filtrete rolls are an option to add to an existing system. Keep in mind that the finer the filter, the harder your systems fan will have to push.
• Clean more often – Vacuum and clean up dust often. Daily if your neighborhood air is very polluted and you have young children, older folks or those with medical conditions. Much of this dust is brought in from the outdoors and then recirculates inside your home. Doing a quick cleaning inside can improve indoor air quality.
• Get some plants – Get some household plants. There have been a couple of studies looking at the ability of plants to accumulate PM. Its seen that leaves with greater amounts rougher surfaces collected and accumulated greater amounts of PM. Epipremnum aureum (also called money plant, devils vine, devils ivy) is a good choice as the texture of the leaves has been shown to collect more PM than similar plants, but most plants with big rough leaves are good choices.
• Avoid strong fragrance – Avoid fragranced products like air fresheners, laundry detergents, etc. These contain volatile organic compounds (VOCs). VOCs can irritate the eyes, nose, throat and lungs. VOCs are also more commonly found indoors than outdoors. When outdoor air quality is poor it would be wise to limit exposure to VOCs when we are indoors.
• Eat more broccoli – Eating broccoli can help your body fight inflammation and expel pollutants.

Experiencing a wellness retreat at Chiva-Som is another way to improve your health, surrounded by nature and in the care of Chiva-Som’s wellness experts.  Wellness consultations and treatments to enhance your breathing and cardiovascular system.

For more information or reservation, please contact Chiva-Som at +66 (0) 32 536 536, reservation@chivasom.com or visit owww.chivasom.com