Yes, you have read the headline right, but this topic is not on how to reduce air pollution and save the earth — it is to save your health.
If you drive a car, and prefer to keep your windows rolled down while driving, we recommend that you stop this practice, unless you are concerned about your health. Driving in traffic, or stuck at a traffic light for long periods during your journey could have adverse effects on your health — thanks to all the pollutants that your smog-prone city is making you breathe. However, rolling up your windows and turning on your air conditioner can help you cut down the amount of bad air you breathe in.
A research done by a few engineers at the Washington University in St. Louis has highlighted that air conditioners are the most effective method of keeping your cabin air as pollution-free for you and your family. They carried out their tests by fitting portable pollution sensors in both types of cars which have the AC kept on and with windows rolled down, as well as outside the respective vehicles. Their experiment was carried out for around four months and all the data that was recorded identified the different concentrations of pollutants in their location, the vehicles nearby, and do on. They also measured in different conditions such as with windows up, with windows down, with AC on, with AC off, with fan only mode, etc.
In their research, they concluded that with the AC kept on, the cabin air was around 20 – 34 per cent cleaner than with the Windows rolled down. The AC in the car has a cold evaporator, which absorbs heat and produces cold air, and the intake fans for the AC also have an air filter, which can reduce the amount of suspended particles in the air.
However, there’s one more thing to be noted, and it is equally important. While turning on your air conditioner will take care of your health, it is definitely adding on to the global warming issue. Your improvement on the cabin air will definitely add on to the environment at large. So do keep in mind that you should use this method only if you are in smoggy areas or heavily polluted areas where your health is important.
(Source)
