Avoid Air Pollution

[circular]

Hi Slacker, I agree this is much like dietary, supplement and other strategies that don't have robust scientific documentation to back them, or like trying to trust the plethora of healthcare practitioners who continually recommend such strategies as if there's more scientific backing for them than there is. That bothers me too, but I think the risk here for me is much worse in not treating AQ problems than taking my chances with a few companies that appear to have the know-how to bring greater help. awareness and control to consumers.

For a little back story ...

I got the IQAir knowing: 1) We were going to have to replace our carpets and the new ones would emit a lot of VOCs for a long time. (There were multiple reasons we couldn't use wood or other alternative flooring.) 2) We live near a lot of road traffic and that pollution is only going to get worse over time (unless we're all in clean, driver-less cars soon). 3) I'm a heterozygous carrier for alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency, which is normally never thought to affect those like me who are heterozygous (and truly is serious for those who are homozygous), but combined with my connective tissue disorder, I wouldn't be surprised if this elastin-related gene could further exacerbate the integrity of my lung tissue at the air pollution interface.

I got the Wynd because I needed a mold/spore filter when staying somewhere I have to stay twice a year that has a history of mold issues.

Then I do what most people do ... Work to justify the spending to try to protect my health. But I'm not convinced (yet?) in any way that I've made bad decisions here. I don't see any major red flags but I'm open. I wouldn't read too much into them not including mycotoxins on the chart. I think there are probably dozens if not hundreds of different things that could go on their image, and they've selected a representative sample according to what most people have heard about... but I'm putting words in their mouth. I'm not sure I've seen mycotoxins mentioned in any coverage of what is included in these particle size ranges.

I know at least some of the companies in the consumer AQ device field do test their product against much more expensive (and precise) industrial use devices. Here's a SmartAir website comparison I saw last night; it includes LaserEgg (not 2 or 2+) but not Wynd. The whole piece is interesting, including the comments. I'll have to look into the re-calibration issue. I'm now leaning more away from the Laser Egg 2+ when it comes out, and more toward the AirVisual Node which uses CO2 in part as a stand-in for VOC exposure, but I need to learn more about both. Since I have the Wynd particle monitor my main interest is in adding a layer of VOC monitoring of some kind

That led me to the SmartAir home page, which looks like an interesting company seeking to make good air filtration available at a lower price while educating the public on AQ issues. There's a rather damning image indicating I could have way overspent on the IQAir, which would not surprise me (the prices they show are in RMBs), but I'll need to take a closer look at all that, since SmartAir is also selling. They also compare with the IQAir HealthPlus not Pro, which doesn't filter VOCs. Since SmartAir is using only a HEPA filter as far as I could tell during my brief look, their's doesn't filter VOCs. Their focus really seems to be the particles I'm extremely sensitive to VOCs, so that makes a big difference to me.

This SmartAir site is quickly becoming a favorite. They have an interesting page on Do purifiers depend on placebo effects? Based on a small but controlled study, they indicate that air purifiers work (their emphasis being on HEPA particle filtration but they give a not to /VOCgas removal too), then go on to show changes in inflammatory blood markers that support the correlation with heart disease. While this small study didn't show detrimental effects on lung function, they conclude with additional references that go into this more (but I don't have time to read more):

But this is only one study…

Because these results are compared to people who received a fake purifier, they cannot be explained by a placebo effect. And like any finding, we should be wary of making conclusions based on a single study, but there are at least four other recent studies out with similar findings (1, 2, 3, 4).

Bottom line: Air purifiers improve health markers in people living in polluted places, and these are not placebo effects.

[slacker]

Circ - I completely support you and the decisions you have made concerning your health and specific concerns. I too am trying to navigate through territories with incomplete maps. I have mold in my house, positive CIRS markers, and am genetically susceptible to biotoxins, including mold. The remediation companies available to me do not follow Shoemakers approach to remediation, which puts me at risk for increased mycotoxins during and after the remediation process. The quotes for the remediation work alone is around $15,000, not including replacing ceiling tiles and carpet, or post remediation testing. My goal is to get through a very expensive process without getting sicker! So I'm looking for ways to monitor small particles smaller than 0.3 microns (mycotoxins) during the process, and to have a portable air cleaner that is not just filtering mold spores, but mold fragments and mycotoxins as well. These are all theoretical risks, hard to quantify or predict.

Moving is always an option, but even more expensive. By law, presence of mold must be reported upon selling a property, so the remediation must be done whether or not I continue to live there. The market is down in my neighborhood. I have lived at the house about 1.5 years. Etc etc.

I'm not frozen in indecision, just collecting as much information as possible to make an educated guess on what to do! And you have helped me immensely in my discovery phase.

[circular]

Wow, Slacker, thanks for sharing all that. I had more added here, but it's probably better for the CIRS thread, so will try to put it there with an update I expect to have in a week or so. I can't imagine going through what you're going through, and I confess I haven't done the home mold testing because I'm too scared of a bad reading, and so far my smoking gun appears to be the layers of MRSA in my sinuses (which I realize may also suggest poor ability to handle mold, which I know I've been exposed to in prior homes). That along with my high viral titres, in addition to the VOCs mentioned, pointed me to the IQAir to handle any airborne mold, viruses and bacteria in my home too, but I don't have any visual or other evidence that there is any mold (which I know isn't proof). I'm not sure if my approach saving money on home testing plus possible remediation will do me a disservice in the long run, but until I'm well enough to work again, I can't get into major mold remediation. It's something of a vicious circle if it turns out I can't get well without such remediation.

It sounds like the first question is whether there is any consumer level air monitor that detects greater than the ~88% < .3 that Wynd's monitor claims to do. (By the way you can buy their monitor without buying their filter, although for those who use the filter too the monitor does slide in and out of the base of the filter for 'storage' and 'on-board' use.) If the ~12% < .3 that Wynd's monitor doesn't filter is essentially all gas/VOCs, and if mold fragments and mycotoxins don't degrade into toxic, single-molecule vaporized/solubalized/rightword? gases, but rather stay at the filterable < .3 level for Wynd, it may be a contender.

But I understand your need for high confidence in such a product, and I'm not at all wedded to or invested in Wynd. Let's keep on this because I'm sure there are or will be others who want to filter the mycotoxins and mold fragments ... me for one, since you've now enlightened me too! I wonder if some of the professional monitors can be bought used online, but one would need to know that they could be re-calibrated if needed.

[circular]

So I'm looking for ways to monitor small particles smaller than 0.3 microns (mycotoxins) during the process, and to have a portable air cleaner that is not just filtering mold spores, but mold fragments and mycotoxins as well.

slacker I pushed my contact at Wynd for further clarification and he wrote back apologizing because he realized or learned that he had misspoken.

They don't have a figure for how much below .3 the Wynd filters. He says some, but he can't give it a percentage. He sent charts showing the test results for the filter they use in the Wynd, the middle one.

unnamed-2.png

So that explains why the first image from him that I posted before indicates with blue-green shading that the filter handles above .3.

I hadn't been to their website since before buying it, and I'd forgotten this How It Works page. What really caught my eye there is that they have applied a layer of silver to the filter to kill mold, bacteria and viruses. Viruses are <.3, but in this case they apparently get killed by the silver lining rather than being trapped by the filter itself.

I'm wondering if silver would kill or destroy mycotoxins (are they all living or some mycotoxins are by-products that wouldn't be considered living)? I had an appointment with Dr. Ackerley again yesterday and she said if my fourth nasal culture isn't clear (from three different MRSA strains and after three rounds of nasal antibiotics) then it's time to use EDTA and silver, although she also mentioned iodine might be a possibility.

He also clarified that the tracker/monitor doesn't currently detect below .5, but they are working on improving that. I'm waiting for confirmation whether it monitors up to 2.5 or up to 10. So it's a mixed bag that's taking a lot of time to sort out, but all a good education about what things to look for in a monitor and filter.

[slacker]

slacker I pushed my contact at Wynd for further clarification and he wrote back apologizing because he realized or learned that he had misspoken.

Dag nab it! And piffle...disappointed, not surprised. I don't think the technology is there yet.
My understanding, limited as it may be, is that mycotoxins are byproducts of killing mold and are not alive. I have not personally done the literature research to confirm this opinion.

I had another conversation with my mold inspector (different guy and company than the mold remediator). The two of them (inspector and remediator) think that most of my air quality problem is coming from open sump pumps and a gap in soil coverage in a large crawlspace, and not the mold found in the floor joists in the basement (really ceiling from the basement's point of view). It is not clear to me that this perspective explains my positive ERMI/HERTSMI-2 taken in my main floor living space. They have a different world view from Dr Shoemaker et al (such as Dr Ackerley, who sounds wonderful by the way).

Mr Mold Inspector is suggesting a few additional remediation steps that have the potential to reduce the creation and spread of mycotoxins, which of course adds to the cost, but if the remediation is going to be done, I'd like to do it as well as possible given the local choices available. One of his suggestions is running an "air scrubber" in the main house during remediation, not just in the basement where all the work will be done. I need to find out what size particles these air scrubbers can handle. I doubt that I will be able to monitor particles before, during, and after remediation (due to lack of available technology) but am still considering getting a portable air filter like IQAir for the duration.

Stay tuned! Thanks so much for your advice and generous sharing of your research and experience. And sorry for all the ()()()

[circular]

Hi Slacker,

Wanted to mention that I plan to use the Wynd mostly in my car and traveling. While the readings may not include everything, I doubt the car's cabin filter kills mold. Hopefully it traps it, but if any of it is getting into the car it won't be killed or filtered unless I do something about it. Then again I took a nice hike yesterday and today I'm all stuffed up. Who knows what molds I inhale while enjoying the outdoors.

But back to filters. It seems I need to learn more about car cabin filters. I use the dealer's, but one can obtain and install their own I think. I think Subaru's dealer filter (if all the same) may be a good one, because the Wynd meter doesn't detect terribly high particle levels above its .5 threshold, even when I'm in fairly heavy traffic with the windows up. In fact it's in the healthy range so much of the time I've wondered about its efficacy, but then occasionally something very identifiable will trigger it to go up and I realize it seems to be working. Yesterday I used one of the cans of air you spray electronics with, and even though its labeled ozone free, the Wynd tracker went up into the moderate zone. I wondered what was causing the blip and then realized I'd been spraying the can just moments before about two feet away from the tracker. I just thought the can had air in it, but no, it has: 'Vapor Harmful. Contains 1,1 Difflorethane 75-37-6'. Seems that's something else to rid my house of. I discovered a safer substitute called a Rocket Blower on Amazon in a photography chat group.

Meanwhile, Wynd confirmed that the tracker will pick up vapor and that a high reading after a shower can be due to moisture. Oh well, I'd installed a 'better' shower head filter and am happy with it. Have noticed my hair combs out much more easily without re-wetting it and my skin feels softer, and I already had a home water softener, it's doing something but I can't vouch for each claim. Although it claims to produce negative ions, I came to be persuaded from reading that it would be such a low level that I'm not worried about ozone. Afterall, the public doesn't get ozone warnings when they go to the beach???

I agree with you that your mold inspector and remediator don't seem to 'get it'. There's no reason the floor joist mold couldn't be contributing to your air problem? Or do they measure all possible air contaminants and know that yours can't come from mold?

I like IQAir a lot, but I haven't yet been able to test how it's handling VOCs, which my experience tracking before the IQAir, and before I had to return the VOC monitors, showed increase on a regular basis inside my home. I think VOCs may be my bigger indoor AQ issue due to the local traffic, and those tests were before the new carpets which I know are bathing me in VOC glory. I've pretty much rid my house of any other VOCs I can think of. I grow and eat a lot of broccoli sprouts which have been shown to help the body reduce a couple chemicals significantly, so I suspect they help with other chemical detox as well.

When you do the remediation work, and I realize cost must be a big dilemma, but ideally you might want both general air filtration and the Wynd to use right by you for a 'boost' in the air right around you, especially since it kills at least the mold with that silver layer. Even though IQAir is excellent, I would think you'd ideally want it running on quite a high setting for a long while. But the high setting I'd consider to be indooro noise pollution. I should be running it at six all the time for these dang VOCs, but I couldn't tolerate that noise (bad hyperacusis and tinnitus too). The last to leave the house sets IQAir to six, and then it goes back down to two or three when someone comes home. Even though I know it can't clear the carpet VOCs fast enough at those low levels, it does help because the odor is much worse if it's not running at all. Love the two setting for white noise at night.

[circular]

One of my favorite meal cheats occurs when I'm in a part of town that has a real deal Jamaican restaurant. For some reason when I was last there I decided to bring my little Wynd AQ tracker in and see how the air was. It was quite good, but then while I was eating all of a sudden a blast of frying food air wafted from the kitchen into the seating area. It was a smell many would think was an attractive part of the ambiance. I looked at the tracker and took a screenshot:

IMG_6458.PNG

And this doesn't include the fine particulates under .5. It didn't take too long for it to get into the 200s, but that wasn't great either. It's a small restaurant in an old shopping center, and I suspect the ventilation in the kitchen isn't up to snuff. Well maybe I won't be cheating there anymore. Between most of the food not being on my diet, and the air not being dependable ...

[slacker]

Well maybe I won't be cheating there anymore. Between most of the food not being on my diet, and the air not being dependable ...

can you get the food to go? Every once in a while as a treat?

[circular]

Thanks for the thought! It's a bit far from home, so I'm not too likely to do that. Usually I get a wonderful salad with shrimp on it, and it's the dressing and seasoning that are full of lectins and/or spices that I can tell aren't great for me, although I've cheated on worse there before

[circular]

Interesting. I live in an area known for poor air quality...so I guess I'll just hold my breath....

All the more reason to get a Wynd for your car and IQ Air HealthPro Plus for your home, especially maybe your bedroom where you spend so much time sleeping?

A good basic place to start is the American Lung Association's State of the Air (2017) report, available online. Keep in mind that while PM2.5 is highly-dispersed levels are still significantly higher near roadways and some industrial areas. If you have air monitoring networks in your area the levels measured at monitoring stations - while useful - don't necessarily reflect what goes on a few blocks or a few kilometers away. Also, there is some indication that PM2.5 is worse when occurring with other types of pollution - not surprising, I guess. But it means that PM2.5 levels don't tell the whole story.

True, and the public monitor maps don't even really show one near me. To make them even less reliable as a real-time guide, I since learned through the Wynd engineer, that:

Generally the outdoor monitors will measure a few things (PM, NOx, VOC's, etc) calculate an AQI value for each and output the highest value. Depending on your location this most likely would be PM, but it can be some of the dangerous chemicals, if there are contaminants nearby. Also, EPA stations do not provide instantaneous values as they provide 12 or 24 hour weighted-average values. This means that if there is a sudden change in AQI the station would report it well after Wynd did [assuming Wynd is outside where you are].

Also, here is a nice summary of the latest research on PM2.5 pollution and AD (in case it hasn't already been mentioned): http://www.sciencemag.org/news/2017/01/ ... s-dementia

Thanks Tom. I checked the ALA's report and found my county is among the 'Cleanest Counties for Short-Term Particle Pollution (24-hour PM2.5)' , and I have noted it's quite good AQ using monitors (public and private). I suspect the VOCs are actually a worse problem, but still waiting on the Laser Egg 2+ to become available in the states.