How to maintain a healthy environment inside your vehicle

Over the last several years, homeowners have increasingly emphasized clean air in their homes. The growing popularity of home air purifiers suggests today's homeowners want to make certain the environment inside their home is as healthy as possible.

While protecting the environment in a home is important, it's equally as important for motorists to maintain a healthy environment in their vehicles. The average American spends roughly 10 to 15 hours per week inside a car, where dust, odors, smoke and other potentially sour smells can make riding in a car rather unpleasant. In addition, air pollution and allergens inside a vehicle can pose a significant health risk to drivers and their passengers. Fortunately, there are several steps drivers can take to maintain a healthy environment inside their vehicle.

* Improve air quality. Perhaps the best way drivers can ensure their passengers have a healthy environment while traveling in a car is to improve the air quality within the vehicle. The GoPure Automotive Clean Air System from Philips quickly and effectively purifies the air inside a vehicle by eliminating harmful gases, dust, pollen, smoke, odors, and bacteria. Employing a 3-stage filtering process, the GoPure system, which can be easily placed beneath a seat, in the rear of the vehicle or on a seatback, captures big particles, such as human hair and pet hair, during the pre-filter stage before the HEPA filter removes these particles and others, including pollen and pet dander. In the final stage, GoPure's advanced HESA filter removes harmful gases and even bad odors, such as those caused by smoke, ensuring the vehicle's interior is not only healthy, but also pleasant for drivers and passengers alike.

* Clean the vehicle's interior. Many automobile owners pay particular attention to the appearance of their vehicle's exterior. However, those same drivers don't spend nearly as much time, if any, tending to the vehicle's interior. But a neglected interior doesn't just fall victim to spills and dirt or other particles brought in from the outside. Over time, a neglected interior might begin to grow mildew, which is both unhealthy and unpleasant. In general, clean the vehicle's interior once a month to prevent mildew growth and the buildup of dirt and grime.

* Don't fall in love with the "new car smell." Few consumers can resist the famed "new car smell." Though enticing, the new car smell is actually an outgassing of toxic chemicals from newly formed plastics, and the chemicals in these gases have been linked to birth defects, impaired learning, liver toxicity, premature births, and early puberty in laboratory animals. Though this doesn't mean consumers should avoid buying new cars, it should inspire consumers to address the new car smell immediately. GoPure's HESA filter can easily and effectively remove the harmful gases that stem from the new car smell, while continuously removing additional odors as the car ages.

* Vacuum carpets, floor mats and between seats. Carpets and seating are another collection point for dirt and pollutants and need to be vacuumed thoroughly. Make sure to get the floor mats, the floor under the floor mats and all the way under the seats. Pound your seats with something large like a baseball bat to loosen and knock out all the dirt and soil that has settled into the creases and stitching.

* Protect newer vehicles on hot days. Hot weather can take its toll on drivers, and it can also wreak havoc on their vehicle's interior. Heat from the sun can cause the vehicle's plastics, vinyl or leather parts to emit volatile organic compounds, or VOCs, which, according to the Environmental Protection Agency, can produce both short-term and long-term adverse health effects. Whenever possible, park in the shade or use a sun shade on the windshield. In addition, slightly opening the windows in spring and summer promotes air flow through the cabin, helping reduce the risk of VOC buildup inside the vehicle.

More information about the GoPure Automotive Clean Air System from Philips is available at

www.philipsgocure.com or 800-257-6054.