We all know that poor air quality is unhealthy for everyone. And, we know that there is a relationship between air quality and asthma, heart disease and stroke.

Air pollution has also been linked to adverse pregnancy outcomes including lower birth weights and higher rates of miscarriage.

But what we may not all know is if the air is dirty outside, is the air inside our homes potentially dangerous too?

Dr. Liz Joy with Intermountain Healthcare and a Board Member for Utah’s Clean Air Partnership (UCAIR) told us there isn’t a simple answer to that question.

Dr. Joy says there are several factors to consider, including whether your house is a drafty older home or a built with new, modern construction.

Those older homes may be letting more of the bad air in. Newer homes may be helping to keep the bad air out.

But, Dr. Joy says there are a couple of things you can do to improve the indoor air quality.

First, she says make sure you have a really good filter on your furnace and make sure you change it often.

Second, maybe you’ll want to consider getting a hepa-filter, one of the plug-in filters you can put in a bedroom.

Dr. Joy says don’t forget that we all, as citizens, have a responsibility to do our best to clear the air, and make responsible decisions about driving since most of our air pollution comes from tailpipes.

She says it comes back to remembering “Turn the key be idle free”.

You can find more information at ucair.org.

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Originally Appeared Here