If you're happiest when pulling on a pair of Marigolds, a recent report put forward by the UK's Royal College of Physicians (RCP) and the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health (RCPCH) may be of considerable interest.
According to the new report, exposure to pollution from household products; including cleaning supplies, air fresheners and candles, is increasing an individual's chances of developing certain health problems.
Experts asserted that exposure to personal care products, mould or mildew, fires or wood-burning stoves and poorly maintained gas heaters is linked to a number of health conditions including asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, respiratory problems as well as cancer and cardiac illness.
While the vast majority of us are aware of the potential implications associated with certain practices, experts insist further dangers lurk within our home, with the report's authors asserting: "Being indoors can offer some protection against outdoor air pollution, but it can also expose us to other air pollution sources."
"There is now good awareness of the risks from badly maintained gas appliances, radioactive radon gas and second-hand tobacco smoke, but indoors we can also be exposed to NO2 from gas cooking and solvents that slowly seep from plastics, paints and furnishing," read the report.
Further to this, experts warned that the eradication of certain products from one's home may not be enough if the building itself is a potential source of chemical pollutants, with the report continuing: "These include the construction materials, as well as paints, glues, furniture, wallpaper and draper."
Commenting on the findings of the recently released report, Dr Penny Woods, chief executive of the British Lung Foundation, paid tribute to its authors, saying: "This landmark report lays out in the starkest terms yet the devastating impact air pollution is having on our health, our children's health, our economy and society as a whole."
It has been established that outdoor pollution caused 29,000 deaths in the UK in 2008, but that figure has risen considerably in the last eight years, with the figure currently standing at 40,000.
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