Can you cut 1 Tonne of carbon pollution out of your life?
Take the challengeNot only do plants absorb harmful CO2 but they can absorb an array of other damaging toxins too!
What's more important than the air we breathe? Not much!
Yet so many activities in our daily lives are poisoning our number one life-force! If aliens exist they are surely in hysterics at the human willingness to self-destruct. The good news is there are little things we can all do to extend the life of our planet and ourselves.
The World Health Organization recently declared that around 7 million premature deaths in 2012 were caused by air pollution. Both indoor and outdoor air pollution can lead to strokes, heart disease and lung cancer, among other life-threatening illnesses.
Plants are one of the simplest and most effective ways to clean the air. As part of a clean air study in 1989 NASA released their first list of air filtering plants. NASA researchers suggest having at least one plant per 100 square feet of home or office space for the best results in air purification. Not only can plants produce Oxygen from CO2, some plants are also able to absorb toxins like benzene, formaldehyde and/or trichloroethylene.
Here are some of the best air-purifying plants to keep in the home or the office:
English ivy ( Hedera helix )
Spider plant ( Chlorophytum comosum )
Golden pothos or Devil's ivy ( Scindapsus aures or Epipremnum aureum )
Peace lily ( Spathiphyllum 'Mauna Loa')
Chinese evergreen ( Aglaonema modestum )
Bamboo palm or reed palm ( Chamaedorea sefritzii )
Snake plant or mother-in-law's tongue ( Sansevieria trifasciata 'Laurentii')
Heartleaf philodendron ( Philodendron oxycardium , syn. Philodendron cordatum )
Selloum philodendron ( Philodendron bipinnatifidum , syn. Philodendron selloum )
Elephant ear philodendron ( Philodendron domesticum )
Red-edged dracaena ( Dracaena marginata )
Cornstalk dracaena ( Dracaena fragans 'Massangeana')
Janet Craig dracaena ( Dracaena deremensis 'Janet Craig')
Warneck dracaena ( Dracaena deremensis 'Warneckii')
Weeping fig ( Ficus benjamina )
Gerbera daisy or Barberton daisy ( Gerbera jamesonii )
Pot mum or florist's chrysanthemum ( Chrysanthemum morifolium )
Rubber plant ( Ficus elastica )
Did you know that plants in an office can increase productivity by 12%?
READ THIS NEXT: Your ultimate guide to composting
1 Million Women is more than our name, it's our goal! We're building a movement of strong, inspirational women acting on climate change by leading low-carbon lives. To make sure that our message has an impact, we need more women adding their voice. We need to be louder. Joining us online means your voice and actions can be counted. We need you.
