It gets hotter and hotter in summer. And more and more citizens are looking for solutions to withstand the heatwave at home. That is one of the reasons why sales of domestic air conditioners have skyrocketed in recent years, especially during a heat wave. There are provinces, such as Seville, the Balearic Islands or Valencia, where more than 60% of homes have one of these devices, according to data from Idealista.
The simplicity of the gesture of pressing a button often obviates the negative consequences that air conditioning can cause. The impact that its use has on the environment, due to energy consumption, and therefore, on the electricity bill are already known. But the potential health effects of overusing air conditioning often go unnoticed.
The Spanish Society of Pneumology and Thoracic Surgery (SEPAR) has carried out several studies on the subject. Dr. Sandra Dorado, pulmonologist and coordinator of the area of ??Respiratory Diseases of Occupational and Environmental Origin (EROM) at SEPAR, points out first of all that air conditioning dehydrates, that is, because the humidity in the room is lost.
This lack of moisture in the air we breathe can impair the proper functioning of various parts of the respiratory system. One of them is the upper airway (from the anterior nostrils to the larynx), where there are possibilities of nasal congestion, rhinitis or pharyngitis occurring for this reason. In the lower airway (the bronchial system) there is a risk of losing the protection of the lungs by exposing them to drier air. One of the reasons is that the mucus in the bronchial epithelium dries up. In addition, the cilium (the endogenous brush of the bronchial epithelium), which helps to sweep up dirt that is inhaled from the outside, becomes less mobile due to this dehydration of the air.
By losing the defense system, it is possible for respiratory infections to appear. “It is very common to hear legionella infections. Water systems are more common in industrial or commercial air conditioners and there, by having this water tank, the growth of this organism is favored”, says the doctor.
There are also other pathologies that can worsen, worsen or get out of control, such as asthma (cold and lack of humidity trigger it). Or COPD, that is, Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease. The bronchus, being more sensitive, can have a hyper response. “Then that bronchus closes or there may even be an exacerbation of COPD because respiratory infections are favored,” says the doctor. Thus, if it occurs, this would be a trigger for the worsening of said pathology.
More consequences on the list of misuse of air conditioning are migraines, fatigue (asthenia), the appearance of allergies, dry skin, conjunctivitis due to dry eye, muscle contractions or contractures if the flow directly hits the person. . “What air conditioning does is recirculate the same air that we are breathing in this area,” says Dorado. Also, if there are mites or animals at home, “we would be inhaling those pneumoallergens all the time.”
For some years there has been talk of what is known as “the sick building”. The doctor explains that buildings also emit gases or give off paint particles, solvents, etc. If the air conditioner recirculates air from the building, the people inside end up inhaling those particles. And “they are toxic to the respiratory tract,” she says.
Knowing all of the above, what can we do to avoid getting sick from the use of air conditioning? An important point that Dr. Dorado highlights is setting a target temperature: in summer about 24 degrees and in winter about 22 degrees. “Reducing the outside temperature by 5 degrees would be enough to have a comfortable feeling,” she says. In addition, there are devices that are automatic and turn off when they reach the set temperature.
Then, as prescribed by the manufacturer, regular maintenance must be carried out, such as changing the filters. This is a gesture that is often forgotten in homes. It is also important to ventilate the passenger compartment with outside air; In this way, the air is favored to become humid again and to recover its properties. The doctor recalls that there is also the possibility of using fans, which favor “that sensation of comfort of a decrease in temperature because the moisture from our skin evaporates.”
