The Impact Of Poor Air Quality on Yours & Others Health

We all agree that what we eat and drink is important. A healthy diet is crucial to our health, and that's why many of us spend a great deal of time thinking about what we put in our bodies. Yet, we don't give the same level of attention to the air we breathe in. However, we breathe in far more than we ever eat or drink. And the impact of what we breathe can be drastic. Just like a poor diet, if the air we “consume” is bad quality, the effects on our physical and mental health can be dire and even fatal.

What Is Bad Air Quality

It is clear that bad air quality is a severe issue. But what actually is bad air quality? Air quality refers to the composition of the air. The health risks outlined below result from too many air pollutants and prolonged exposure to them. Pollutants come in many forms, including:

Biological pollutants
Carbon monoxide (CO)
Carbon dioxide (CO2)
Nitrogen dioxide (NO2)
Volatile organic compounds (VOCs)
Ozone (O3)

The Health Risks Of Bad Air Quality

The pollutants we breathe in can have a damaging effect on several key organs and systems within the body. For many, the most likely thing to come to mind will be the lungs. And though the lungs and respiratory system are certainly at risk, your eyes, nose, throat, and heart can all be affected too. Public Health England also states, "Emerging evidence suggests that air pollution may also affect the brain”.

Air pollutants can lead to coughing and shortness of breath in the short term. It can also exacerbate asthma. And over an extended period, they can contribute to respiratory problems, cardiovascular disease and other serious health conditions.

Air quality affects us at all stages of life. It has been linked to low birth weight. In childhood, it can result in slowed lung function development. And for adults, the results can be as severe as a stroke or lung cancer. Air quality is also associated with dementia, heart attacks, and lung function decline in later years.

The Committee on the Medical Effects of Air Pollutants (COMEAP) has observed that by increasing the risks of cancers, cardiovascular disease, and respiratory disease, air pollution contributes to thousands of deaths in the UK. Some estimates place this number between 28,000 and 36,000 deaths annually.

In addition to the link between air pollution and cognitive decline in later years, the toll on cognitive function can be seen much earlier. Research suggests air quality can negatively affect children's ability to learn and their productivity. There is also a correlation between air quality and mental health, with research suggesting it plays a role in conditions such as depression.

With the impacts of air quality extending to our mental health, it is proven to be a wide-reaching threat which poses risks to all areas of our health and wellness. Combined with its ever-present nature, it is one of the foremost health challenges we face.

Indoor Air Quality

When we talk about air pollution, it likely conjures up ideas of vehicles spewing fumes into the air. And whilst this is undoubtedly a factor, outdoor air quality is only one side of the issue. Much of our time is spent indoors, in social settings such as work offices, gyms, schools, and shops. Though the problem is very real and the risks are significant, the fact that indoor air quality is such a large part of the issue is reassuring. Unlike outdoor air quality, we can take greater ownership of indoor space and make practical changes to improve the air quality in many of the most commonly occupied spaces. In fact, not only can we improve indoor air quality, in some cases it is a legal requirement. We must meet air purifying legislation, which includes The Control of Substances Hazardous to Health (COSHH) regulations requiring employers to assess risks to employees.

Identifying Poor Air Quality

Part of the issue with air quality is that so few of us know what's in the air we breathe. Without proper air quality tests, it can be almost impossible to tell. To continue the comparison to the food we consume - food is often labelled. It includes nutritional values, lists of allergens and much more. And all of this information is crucial to helping us make intelligent choices about what we eat and drink. So when aiming to improve the quality of the air we breathe, a great starting point is to be as equally informed and understand the makeup of the air around us.

An internal air quality assessment and dust inhalation risk assessment will serve as a risk assessment for indoor air quality. It will establish a baseline for the quality of the air and identify what pollutants are present. Armed with this invaluable information, an air quality specialist can recommend the right air quality management system.

Improving Air Quality

There are a number of measures you can take to improve indoor air quality. Though a risk assessment will highlight specific needs and an air quality specialist can match those to more tailored solutions the broad ideas and approaches are the same.

A great starting point is to focus on avoiding the ingress of outdoor pollutants.

Firstly, to tackle outdoor emissions there are three main areas to address; ventilation, filtration, and keeping your building “airtight”. For ventilation, positioning is vital. If placed too close to ground pollutants, such as near a busy road with high car emissions, you will bring many pollutants into the building. Placing ventilation intake on the roof is often a more suitable option.

Even well-positioned ventilation will permit some level of contaminants into a building. To mitigate this, you can utilise filters which trap the pollutants. HEPA filters are the recognised standard for high-quality filters as they can capture large particles (such as pollen and mould spores) and smaller particles (such as chemicals and fossil fuels).

Finally, to prevent emissions from entering your building, keep it airtight or as close as you can get. This means keeping windows shut, which may seem counterintuitive. It may be your first impulse to open a window to allow bad quality air to escape. However, this is merely an invitation for more polluted outdoor air to enter the building. With the correct ventilation and filtration, the air in the building will be far cleaner than that from outside, so allowing outdoor air in should be avoided where possible.

The next area to address is indoor pollutants. Again, you will require ventilation, expelling pollutants where avoiding them is not possible such as those from cooking. Filtration will also be essential. Capturing pollutants with filters in your HVAC system will prevent them from being recirculated throughout the building. Whilst ventilation and filtration are key to dealing with pollutants in the air, you should also take measures to reduce pollutants from being emitted indoors.

Learn More About Air Quality

If you’re interested in learning more about air pollution, its effects and how to improve it visit our blog. We have many useful guides, filled with information and advice. Here are some top picks for your next read;

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What is the Workplace Exposure Level for Dust? Understanding TWA and STEL

By Andy Potter • September 7, 2026

If you're responsible for health and safety in your workplace, you've probably encountered the terms "workplace exposure level," "TWA," and "STEL." But what do they actually mean, and why do they matter for dust management? The simple answer: these are legal limits set by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) to protect workers from harmful dust exposure. If you're not monitoring them, you're flying blind and potentially breaking the law. What is Workplace Exposure Level? A workplace exposure level (WEL) is the maximum amount of a harmful substance that a worker can be exposed to during their working day without suffering adverse health effects. For dust, it's measured in milligrams per cubic metre of air (mg/m³). The HSE sets these limits based on scientific evidence about how different dust types affect human health. Different dusts have different exposure limits because they pose different risks. For example, the WEL for respirable crystalline silica is far stricter than for general inert dust, because silica is significantly more harmful to the lungs. Think of it this way: the WEL is your compliance baseline. If dust concentrations in your workplace stay below this limit, you're meeting your legal obligation. If they exceed it, you have a duty to investigate why and take corrective action. Download the HSEs guidance on workplace exposure limits If you want to understand the levels in your workplace contact us about our silica air sampling services TWA: The 8-Hour Average TWA stands for Time-Weighted Average, and it's the most commonly referenced exposure limit. The TWA measures the average concentration of a substance over a standard 8-hour working day. Here's why that matters: dust exposure isn't constant. Workers might face high concentrations during certain activities (cutting, grinding, demolition) and lower concentrations during others. The TWA accounts for these fluctuations by averaging them out over the full shift. This recognises that workers can tolerate brief periods of higher exposure, provided the average stays within acceptable limits. For example, the current WEL for respirable crystalline silica is 0.1 mg/m³ as an 8-hour TWA. This means that if a construction worker is grinding stone for part of their shift but doing lower-dust tasks for the rest, the daily average should not exceed this level. The advantage of TWA is that it's practical for real-world work. Few jobs maintain constant dust levels. The disadvantage is that it can mask dangerous peaks, if a worker is exposed to very high concentrations for a short period, the TWA might still look acceptable. STEL: The Short-Term Exposure Limit STEL stands for Short-Term Exposure Limit, and it's your safety net for peak exposures. A STEL is the maximum concentration a worker should experience during any 15-minute period in a working day, and no more than four such periods should occur, with at least 60 minutes between them. The STEL exists precisely because the TWA can obscure dangerous peaks. Imagine a worker exposed to very high silica dust for 15 minutes whilst cutting stone, then lower levels for the rest of the day. The TWA might be within limits, but those 15 minutes could still cause significant lung damage. There should be a maximum of 4 STEL's in a single working day and there must be at least 60-minutes between each STEL period. Not all dusts have a STEL, but those that do (like respirable crystalline silica) reflect a recognition that short, intense exposures carry genuine health risks that the 8-hour average doesn't capture. Reducing personal exposure to inhalable dust with Cleanspace Respirators

What Is Respirable Crystalline Silica Dust?

By Ultra Protect • September 7, 2026

Learn what respirable crystalline silica dust is, the symptoms, UK exposure limits, and how to test for it on site. A practical guide from Ultra Protect.