Home measures against low air humidity which may alleviate health problems

ABSTRACT

Objective

Humidity and temperature are fundamental for the balance in the life cycle of living beings and, consequently, for maintaining the well-being of the human population and reducing the prevalence of infectious diseases. Thus, in order to mitigate the impact of climate change, especially in the period when humidity is not the ideal, it is necessary to adopt some assistance measures. The present experimental study aims to elucidate what would be the recommended option to improve the quality of life of the human being and to clarify which resources (air humidifier, bucket of water or wet towel) will be effective to improve the humidity of the air in times of drought and low moisture.

Methods

The experimental study was carried out with INKBIRD hygrometers allowing the analysis of the variation of air humidity throughout the day. Three forms of treatment were established: humidifier, wet towel and bucket of water. In each room, two hygrometers were placed equidistant from the occupant of the room and their respective treatment that varied between 1m and 2m away from the headboard indoor each room. In addition, two environments were used as controls, one being an external environment and the other an internal closed environment, totaling five rooms for the study. The rooms were monitored between the end of July and the end of August 2019 in Goiania (GO).

Results

Although assistance measures are used to significantly improve air pollution in times of extreme drought, there was a significant difference between them. The humidifier and a wet towel had 7.50% and 5.71% more humidity in the external relation (external control), respectively, more efficient. The volume of water, however, did not show significant difference (p>0.05) and, therefore, there was no variation.

Conclusion

The humidifier and the towel are treatments considered more efficient, and that there was a significant effect of distance on humidity. Therefore, 1m of distance is more efficient in increasing and/or maintaining air humidity, inducing improvements in the populations’ health.

Communicable diseases; Climate change; Air pollution; Humidifiers; Wet towel