The Earth’s atmosphere is the dirtiest it has ever been since the formation of the Earth. This includes the toxic periods when an asteroid hit the planet and even caused part of the extinction of the dinosaurs.

Industrialization’s greatest culprit for atmospheric toxins

A healthy and clean environment means a healthier you, and the air we breathe plays a major role in our overall well being. Toxic fumes are becoming ever present in the air you breathe and this comes from car exhaust fumes, factories, and lots of other places all around us. This lowers the quality of the air we inhale, as well as reducing the amount of oxygen in the air.

The toxins in the air have been known to cause negative health effects such as dizziness, eye infections and headaches among others.

That is the reason planting of trees outdoors is encouraged, and there are also some plants that one can have in the house that can clean up your air, according to a NASA study, done some time back.

NASA is presenting the plants as images

The power of imagery representation is much stronger both to the human memory and the reaction. More often than not, imagery representations last longer and are much more effective. It is therefore, no surprise that Facebook marked video and image ads on the platform as it is doubly as effective as traditional online text and banner ads.

Plants for clean air

Toxic agents found in the air we breathe include benzene, Formaldehyde, trichloroethylene, xylene, and ammonia. In the study, NASA noted that a plant that is able to eradicate harmful toxins from the air should be placed at least one plant per every 100 square feet.

This ensures that the cleaning exercise is efficient and the plants can be placed at home or in the office. Other studies have shown that micro-organisms in the soil of a potted plant can remove Benzene from the air.

The best part about this NASA report is that most of the plants mentioned are readily available. Many are multi-purpose and have been traditionally been used as home remedies. Here are a few plants for clean air that everyone should have in their home.

• English Ivy(Hedera Helix); It reduces airborne fecal matter particles and is the plant that can clear the most toxins in the air. These are; formaldehyde, benzene,  trichloroethylene, xylene and toluene. It is non toxic to pets and it only needs a little moist soil and up to around 4 hours of sunlight.
• Lilyturf (Liriope spicata); This plant that has its origins in Asia, has a host of other names including creeping lilyturf and monkey grass. It is a creeping plant and is very common when it comes to landscaping. This plant can get rid of formaldehyde, trichloroethylene, xylene andtoluene.
• Spider plant(Chlorophytum comosum); It grows to about 24 inches high, and is native to southern Africa, but has been naturalized all over the world and is very easy to grow as a houseplant. Its contribution to a cleaner air is that it can rid toxins such as formaldehyde xylene and toluene.
• Aloe vera– In addition to its many other uses, this plant is also an air cleaner and can rid your air of benzene and formaldehyde.
• Devil’s ivy/ money plant; This is a very popular house plant that grows well in tropical areas. As well as being used for decorative purposes, the money plant can remove benzene, formaldehyde, xylene and toluene.

Although the study was done 27 years ago, new studies that have been conducted afterward have only come out to reinforce the findings of this research. To this date, it still remains relevant and is used widely as a referral to the best plants to keep indoors for Cleaner Air.