We want you to eliminate toxic chemicals inside your car that can make you sick. On average, people in the United States spend over an hour a day in a car. During all of that time, they are getting exposed to potential toxins inside of their cars. If they have their windows down and their air intake open, they are also getting exposed to emissions and particulate matter.
Regardless of whether your windows are opened or closed, you will be getting exposed to potentially hazardous chemicals and gasses. The interior of cars can be an especially toxic place to stay for long periods of time. Chemicals that off-gas from various parts of the car, such as seats, the dashboard, and carpets, can be hazardous to your health.
The Toxic Chemicals Coming from Cars
To better understand the exposure, you have to toxic chemicals and gasses inside your car, you need to know a bit about them. Here are the most common potential toxins inside cars:
Formaldehyde
This chemical is used as a preservative in products such as flame retardants. Yes, the same chemical in embalming fluid is used in cars. Formaldehyde helps protect the occupants of a vehicle from the heat created by the engine and exhaust. Short-term side effects of being exposed to formaldehyde include nose, eyes, and throat irritation, headaches, nausea, and potentially asthma and allergic reactions. Long-term side effects include cancer, bronchitis, and shortness of breath.
Carbon Monoxide
When you have the windows or air intake open in your car, you can potentially be exposing yourself to carbon monoxide. Short-term side effects to carbon monoxide exposure include headaches, nausea, blurred vision, confusion, dizziness, chest pain, difficulty breathing, and unconsciousness. Long-term side effects include miscarriage, fetal damage, seizures, come, and heart failure.
Unhealthy Carbon Monoxide Levels May Exist In Your Home Despite Detector Not Going Off
Carbon Dioxide
The exhaust that comes from vehicles also contains carbon dioxide. When exposed to high levels of this gas, you will experience negative health side effects. The short-term side effects include suffocation from a lack of oxygen, unconsciousness, headaches, vertigo, inability to concentrate, tinnitus, and seizures. When you have prolonged exposure to carbon dioxide, you potentially have changes in the calcium content of your bones, as well as changes to your body’s metabolism.
Indoor Carbon Dioxide Levels and Your Health
Nitric Oxide
Yet another toxic gas released in car exhaust is nitric oxide. When exposed to significant amounts of nitric oxide, you will experience blurred vision, confusion, dizziness, sweating, trouble breathing, headaches, and weakness.
Particulate Matter
Particulate matter covers a wider range of toxins that are dangerous to your health. Traffic pollution is a big cause of this type of toxicity. The most dangerous PM 2.5 is the toxic mold living within the AC/heater. It can also be present if there was any water damage to the interior in your vehicle.
Purify Your Car’s Air
The solution to the toxic chemicals and gasses being released by cars is to use an air purifier in your vehicle. This simple step will help ensure that your car is a healthier place to be when you are driving it. Your health is not something you want to gamble with, so protect yourself and loved ones by purifying your car’s air. We recommend and use the ATEM Air Car Purifier by IQAir to reduce pollutants in your car.
