五招幫你減少室內毒害大綱

We are surrounded by chemicals – in food and drink, cleaning products, household items and furnishings. Here's how to reduce household pollution.

我們周圍到處都是化學物質——食品和飲料，清潔產品，家居用品和傢俱。本文教你如何減少家庭污染。

Ventilate

通風

Cleaning products, cooking, candles and building materials all contribute to pollution inside our homes. The British Lung Foundation (BLF) recommends choosing fragrance-free cleaning products and using solid or liquid products when possible, rather than sprays. It also advises opening windows or skylights, especially when cooking or showering, and avoiding the use of several candles or incense sticks in a small room such as a bathroom. As outdoor pollution can also travel into the home, the BLF also suggests keeping windows closed when Defra's Daily Air Quality Index is high.

清潔產品，烹飪，蠟燭和建築材料都能導致家庭內部污染。英國肺臟基金會(BLF)建議選擇無香味的清潔產品，儘可能使用固體或液體產品，而不是噴霧劑。它還建議打開窗戶或天窗，尤其是在做飯或淋浴時，避免在浴室這樣的小房間裏使用幾支蠟燭或薰香。由於室外污染也會進入家中，因此，英國生物及環境部還建議，當環境部的每日空氣質量指數高時，應關閉窗戶。

Cut down on plastic

減少塑料使用

The synthetic chemical Bisphenol A (BPA) is found in many plastic products and can be ingested or absorbed through skin contact, potentially disrupting the endocrine system. Ninety-five percent of adults are thought to have traces of BPA in their bodies through continuous exposure – Tamara Galloway, a professor of ecotoxicology at the University of Exeter, says avoiding heavily processed and packaged food can help to limit exposure. Breastfeeding or buying baby bottles with a BPA-free label are also among her recommendations.

許多塑料製品中都含有人工合成的化學物質雙酚（BPA)，它可以通過皮膚接觸被人體攝入或吸收，可能會破壞內分泌系統。艾希特大學的生態毒理學教授塔瑪拉加洛韋說，95%的成年人持續暴露在BPA環境中。避免過度加工和包裝食品有助於減少暴露。他也建議嬰兒母乳餵養或者購買帶有無bpa標籤的奶瓶。

Make your own cleaning products

製作你自己的清潔產品

The author of All You Need is Less: A Guilt-Free Guide to Eco-Friendly Living and Stress-Free Simplicity, Madeleine Somerville, says soap, baking soda and vinegar are all you need to make your own cleaning sprays. She recommends filling a spray bottle with hot water, leaving a few inches at the top, before adding a 1/4 cup of white vinegar, 2 tbsp of eco-friendly washing-up liquid and an optional 1tbsp of borax.

《所有你需要的是更少: 環保生活和無壓力指南》一書的作者馬德琳·薩默維爾說，製作你自己的清潔噴霧只需要肥皂、蘇打粉和醋。 她建議在噴霧瓶中加入熱水，頂部留出幾英寸，然後加入1杯白醋，2湯匙環保洗潔精和1湯匙硼砂。

Reduce dust and tackle any damp or mould

減少灰塵並處理潮溼或發黴的地方

A 2016 US study identified 45 toxic chemicals in indoor dust, including phthalates, flame retardants and phenols. "Because indoor dust contains chemicals from a wide variety of products, it is like a parking lot for chemicals in the home," wrote Veena Singla, co-author of the study from the Natural Resources Defense Council in California. Simple steps to reduce exposure include washing hands with plain soap and water, keeping household dust to a minimum by dusting with a damp cloth and using a vacuum with a high-efficiency particulate air (Hepa) filter. Damp and mould can also affect your immune system, as well as increase the chance of respiratory problems. Preventing the build-up of condensation is key, says the NHS, though mould be must removed carefully so as not to release spores.

2016年美國的一項研究發現，室內灰塵中含有45種有毒化學物質，包括鄰苯二甲酸鹽、阻燃劑和酚類。加利福尼亞州自然資源保護委員會的這項研究的合著者維娜·辛格拉(Veena Singla)寫道：“因爲室內灰塵含有來自多種產品的化學物質，它就像是家裏放化學物質的停車場。”。減少暴露的簡單步驟：用普通的肥皂和水洗手，用溼布擦拭，用高效濾網過濾器吸塵，將家裏的灰塵降到最低。潮溼和發黴也會影響你的免疫系統，同時增加呼吸問題的風險。英國國民健康保險制度(NHS)說，防止冷凝物積聚是關鍵，不過必須小心地除去黴菌，以免釋放出孢子。

Consider your paint choices

慎重選擇油漆

As well as the fumes and chemicals given out during painting, freshly decorated walls can continue to pollute long after they are dry. Paint labelled "ecofriendly" or "natural" due to its lowered levels of volatile organic compound (VOC) are not necessarily "green", wrote interior design journalist Katherine Sorrell. Among her recommendations are Edward Bulmer Natural Paint, Aglaia, Biofa, Earthborn and Ecos Organic Paints.

在刷漆過程中會產生化學物質，新裝修的牆壁在乾燥後會繼續污染很長時間。 室內設計記者 Katherine Sorrell 寫道，由於降低了VOC的含量，所以塗料被標註爲"環保型"或"自然型"並不一定是“綠色”。她的推薦Edward Bulmer Natural Paint、Aglaia、Biofa、 Earthborn 和 Ecos Organic Paints等品牌油漆。