While many of us might not understand the workings of an ozone air purifier, we are all familiar with the term from environmentalists, who have been urging us for years to take steps against the depletion of the earth’s natural protective shield, the ozone layer. But because this substance is an important part of our planet’s outer atmosphere, this does not necessarily mean it is suitable for human exposure. And an increasing amount of evidence suggests that this is an argument in which ozone air purifiers should lose.
Ozone, used in indoor air cleaners like the Prozone air purifier, has a scientific formula similar to the oxygen that we require to survive: it is O3 to oxygen’s O2. But what might be a subtle numerical difference to the layperson is, in fact, a highly important distinction.
The ozone used in ozone air purifiers is a highly unstable molecule, unlike oxygen, and has a tendency to bond with other substances. This is how indoor air cleaners containing ozone work: the ozone molecule bonds with those nasty odors, eliminating their pungent effects. But the instability of the molecule means that it is indiscriminate with what it bonds, meaning that once let lose in the human lungs, it can cause a lot of damage.
While indoor air cleaners can increase the air quality in a home, an ozone air purifier can be detrimental to your health. So if you have family members who want to improve the quality of their lives by removing the little things in the air that make them cough and splutter, stay away from ozone air purifiers – they will only make the situation worse.
Ozone air purifiers, maybe not the best air purifiers.
