The Healthy Back to School Hack: Improving Indoor Air Quality

Sending your kids to college can be both an exciting and nerve-racking time. They’ve reached an impressive milestone but are they really ready to take care of themselves in a dorm room all those miles away? When your kid has allergies or asthma, the idea of them living in a small space with limited airflow (and likely poor air quality) in a decades old building may bring you more stress than most other parents.

And with the rise of incidents like wildfires across the country, it’s not just the kids fleeing the nest that could benefit from better air quality. While smoke outdoors is the biggest concern, some smoke from wildfires can enter your home and make it unhealthy to breath indoor air, also.

Healthy Kids, Healthy Performance

Getting fresh air can be a great way to help clean your lungs, boost your mood, lower your heart rate, and even improve your energy levels. However, when school starts back, the options for outside time can decrease tremendously. This is troubling when you consider the Environmental Protection Agency reports indoor air quality in general can contain 2 to 5 times the concentration of pollutants as outside air! But does this really matter for my kids’ education?

Perfect Attendance

Kids who are sick can’t go to school. When kids miss classes for asthma and allergy-related illnesses, it’s easy for them to fall behind on both school work and new learnings. Trying to figure out a new skill or practice at home can be much more difficult for many students, as well as some lessons (such as science experiments) cannot be completed unless in the classroom. The healthier kids stay, the more likely they are to not miss a school day.

Great Grades

Allergy and asthma issues can impact sleep during the night, leading to tiredness during the day and poorer concentration. Students who are unable to concentrate may struggle to retain new information, accurately answer test questions, or even remember to complete an assignment. Good sleep and easy breathing can help them focus on schoolwork so they can do their best.

Better Energy

Poor sleep at night isn’t the only thing that could cause daytime tiredness. The American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology states seasonal and year-round allergies can cause fatigue. The National Library of Medicine reports both dust and exposure to allergens can also cause tiredness, lack of energy, and daytime sleepiness in asthma patients. Even with great sleep, students could still struggle to get moving the next day without addressing the root cause – improving the quality of the air they sleep with.

Choosing the Right Purifier

Air purifiers are a great way to improve indoor air quality. Maybe you can’t have air purifiers installed in every classroom your kids attend. But in dorms and bedrooms, you can help make sure they have the best quality air available while they sleep, limiting their overall exposure, and in living and common areas, contributing to better air quality where they complete their school work.

The EPA also recommends a portable air cleaner as a great way to combat wildfire smoke that may enter your home.

HEPA Filter

When choosing your new air purifier, the first thing you’ll want to look for is a “True HEPA filter”. Our True HEPA filter captures 99.97% of airborne particles down to 0.3 microns. What does that mean? That means it’s removing nearly all dirt, dust, and non-living matter such as pet dander from your air – whether you can see it or not.

Activated Charcoal

As part of the 3-stage filtration system, the activated charcoal layer helps remove odors in your home caused by dander, smoke, cooking and pollutants.

Energy Efficient

Less energy use means less carbon emissions, limiting the impact to outdoor air quality as you battle indoor air quality. All four of our purifier models operate with the same energy consumption as a single light bulb! This lets you use the unit as much as you need without worrying it might be doing more harm than good.

Square Footage

Not all models are created equal. How large is the space you want the air purifier to support? Some brands can clean effectively but only up to 100-200 square feet. The Kenmore 1200e model purifies up to 1,200 square feet with super low energy consumption, based on one air change per hour. Need less? The 850e model supports up to 850 square feet. Need more? We offer models covering up to 2300 square feet.

Smart, Connected

Your purifier is on but is it really working? The Kenmore 2300e model is app-connected, letting you operate and manage your home environment anytime from anywhere. Turn your unit on, monitor your air quality level, change between modes, adjust the fan speed, set a timer, order replacement filters, and more from the palm of your hand.

Quiet

No one likes when the dishwasher or washing machine overpowers the TV. And you certainly don’t want added, distracting noise while you sleep. All four of our purifiers are unnoticeably quiet, blending in with your surroundings so you never know they’re running.

Breathe easy this school year.

Every step you take to improve your children’s health has a positive impact and helps mitigate the potential risks both indoor and outdoor pollutants pose. Good, clean, fresh air no matter where it is, is a great way to help keep them running strong. Shop all four of our air purifier models on Kenmorefloorcare.com.

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No health claims are stated or implied with the use of portable air filtration devices. Portable air filtration is not a health management device and cannot cure, prevent, or treat medical conditions.

HEPA System filters dirt, dust, and non-living matter such as pet dander.
Kenmore air purifiers use less energy than a 50W light bulb.