Is our air as clean as we think it is?

[Lovetheland]

Hi, each Spring my neighbours spray their paddocks with herbicides to kill the grass and weeds before working them up and then sowing them out. This year was the worst as new people have leased the farm land nearest to my land, and spreayed most of it before planting crops. Most Springs when this is being done, I get a bad cough, which nothing seems to help, and this year was the worst I have ever had, even though I shut all the windows and doors as soon as I seen them spraying, but the wind mostly blows it in this direction , so it seems I was too late again. It nearly drove my wife crazy, as it was a loud hacking cough, and as soon as I moved even an arm, or said a word, away I would go again. Only good thing about it was, as long as I did not move, or speak in bed, it was not near as bad, so I was thankful for small mercies.

 

[BeADocToGoTo1]

For most of us in these overpopulated times it is a big no. In big cities you have the usual suspects like roads, airports, manufacturing, refineries, etc. In rural areas exposure is often through farming, pollen, dust, herbicides and pesticides, etc.

In both cases, to reduce the constant hit to your immune system it can help to have an airfilter in the room(s) you spend most your time working and sleeping. Philips and BlueAir are ones I use. I also have a handheld Temtop monitor to check levels. Before bed I check to make sure the bedroom is clean. When it gets bad outside I close up all windows and run the house hvac system which has a HEPA filter as well.

 

[Hip]

Insecticides such as organophosphates are linked to ME/CFS. There is an MEpedia article about it here.

 

[Tammy]

Most Springs when this is being done, I get a bad cough, which nothing seems to help, and this year was the worst I have ever had, even though I shut all the windows and doors as soon as I seen them spraying, but the wind mostly blows it in this direction

That's awful..........being downwind from that. Man I could easily go on a soap box about pesticides. Have you considered getting some kind of good mask for times that they spray? I like the idea of the air filter also. IQ air is a good one but I think expensive. No, I don't think the air is as clean as some may believe.

 

[Rufous McKinney]

Hi, each Spring my neighbours spray their paddocks with herbicides to kill the grass and weeds before working them up and then sowing them out.

Where are you?

There are alot of regulations in certain areas and what your describing could be illegal. And I could suggest who to complain to if I knew if you were in the States....or what state.

 

[Lovetheland]

Where are you?

There are alot of regulations in certain areas and what your describing could be illegal. And I could suggest who to complain to if I knew if you were in the States....or what state.

Insecticides such as organophosphates are linked to ME/CFS. There is an MEpedia article about it here.

Hi @ Rufous McKinney, I am in New Zealand, and yes I know you have laws about that in the States, but not sure about here.

 

[Lovetheland]

That's awful..........being downwind from that. Man I could easily go on a soap box about pesticides. Have you considered getting some kind of good mask for times that they spray? I like the idea of the air filter also. IQ air is a good one but I think expensive. No, I don't think the air is as clean as some may believe.

Hi @ Tammy I agree about pesticides too, and I am always getting on my soapbox about them and herbicides, and more so since I have seen the distress they cause animals at first-hand. Being an animal lover, I feel someone has to stand up for them. I guess I was lucky this time, as I was out putting the alpacas into another paddock when I

That's awful..........being downwind from that. Man I could easily go on a soap box about pesticides. Have you considered getting some kind of good mask for times that they spray? I like the idea of the air filter also. IQ air is a good one but I think expensive. No, I don't think the air is as clean as some may believe.

Hi @Tammy, yes, we do have a mask, but never really had time to go and get it, or even think about it and I should have. I was lucky even knowing they were spraying, as I was out moving my alpacas, and seen the truck working, as often don't hear them with the wind In the trees. Yes, pesticides are so very bad too, and I feel we are killing ourselves, and our animals with them. Reading Silent Spring by Rachel Carson at the moment although I had read bits from it years ago

 

[Lovetheland]

Hi @Hip. I am not surprised at all about the connection to ME/CFS, and pleased that other people are thinking that too

 

[Lovetheland]

For most of us in these overpopulated times it is a big no. In big cities you have the usual suspects like roads, airports, manufacturing, refineries, etc. In rural areas exposure is often through farming, pollen, dust, herbicides and pesticides, etc.

In both cases, to reduce the constant hit to your immune system it can help to have an airfilter in the room(s) you spend most your time working and sleeping. Philips and BlueAir are ones I use. I also have a handheld Temtop monitor to check levels. Before bed I check to make sure the bedroom is clean. When it gets bad outside I close up all windows and run the house hvac system which has a HEPA filter as well.

Hi @BeADocToGoTo1, gee, you sure are prepared, and a good way to be I guess. We just have the one mask, and I sure will wear it if I get a chance next time, and there will be a next time and it might be soon as the crops have been harvested early this week, so they might be spraying again but hopefully they might work the ground up without spreaying this time, I hope.

 

[BeADocToGoTo1]

Hi @BeADocToGoTo1, gee, you sure are prepared, and a good way to be I guess. We just have the one mask, and I sure will wear it if I get a chance next time, and there will be a next time and it might be soon as the crops have been harvested early this week, so they might be spraying again but hopefully they might work the ground up without spreaying this time, I hope.

Especially when suffering from health issues I always look at removing as many insults to the body as is possible. Food quality, water (drinking and washing) quality and in-house air quality are a few of the ones we have complete control over. I had a company do an analysis of potential environmental issues in the house such as mold, air quality, EMF, etc. as well. Any little bit helps in our case.

Some of my family live in agricultural areas and the portable airfilters
were a tremendous help to them from airway irritations, stuffed nose and sinuses, hay fever to allergy symptoms. And just recently there was a study on cancer through air pollution.

 

[Strawberry]

If anyone is interested, here is a website that shows daily winds, and I have it selected (I think) to show air pollution.

https://earth.nullschool.net/#curre...verlay=so2smass/orthographic=-10.47,55.64,540

You can compare your general region to other places around the world. I definitely improve a TON when I am in Hawaii, or on the west coast at the Pacific Ocean. I don't improve at home, even though I am two blocks from Puget Sound, which is salt water that feeds from the Pacific Ocean. But if you zoom in to the Puget Sound region, fairly bad air pollution. Knowing what I see here, I will never live on the eastern half of the United States, or Europe. Or China....

 

[Rufous McKinney]

I know you have laws about that in the States, but not sure about here.

Well...its possible there are regulations and sometimes they can be helpful.

In my State (which is likely about as strict as your gonna get)....people can obtain small amounts of awful stuff as a homeowner and spray it all around willy nilly. (the amount could still be concerning, if your the neighbor or friendly little woodrat).

Meanwhile, applications for agriculture are highly regulated and require alot of reporting. Its how they basically can come back and tell you we sprayed, oh, 345,ooo tons of glyphosate on fields in X county.

We call County Agricultural Inspectors, if its Agricultural. Drift maybe regulated. Buffers etc. Wind conditions for application...

 

[Rufous McKinney]

Or China....

my recently retired coworker is now in China and some months later has developed some lung problem they don't even know what it is....something must be done to address these issues...

 

[Rebeccare]

Whenever my town sprays for mosquitoes, they send out advance notice telling us to close our windows and doors. This doesn't happen very often, but in my region there was a very dangerous mosquito-borne illness that was unusually prevalent this past summer (eastern equine encephalitis--it's often fatal and those who survive usually are left with disabilities). So many towns and cities sprayed pesticides to try to minimize the risk. It did make me feel a little bit unsure of how safe it was to be outside at any point. I hate that they had to use chemicals, but I can also understand why that action was taken. But the presence of pesticides everywhere did make me worried.

 

[Lovetheland]

Whenever my town sprays for mosquitoes, they send out advance notice telling us to close our windows and doors. This doesn't happen very often, but in my region there was a very dangerous mosquito-borne illness that was unusually prevalent this past summer (eastern equine encephalitis--it's often fatal and those who survive usually are left with disabilities). So many towns and cities sprayed pesticides to try to minimize the risk. It did make me feel a little bit unsure of how safe it was to be outside at any point. I hate that they had to use chemicals, but I can also understand why that action was taken. But the presence of pesticides everywhere did make me worried.

Good Late afternoon from here @RebeccaRe. Yes, I feel that when lives are at risk, they sometimes have to spray, but if feel it is much over used, and I wont even use fly spray, just the sticky tapes that we hang from the roof and if you put them in the right place, they are covered in a day or two in the Summer.