Vent-Axia supports Breathe Easy Week to raise awareness of lung disease

Vent-Axia will be supporting Breathe Easy Week between the 13th – 19th June, an annual awareness week set up by the British Lung Foundation (BLF) to raise awareness about the widespread affect of lung disease, which affects about one-in-five people across the UK.

This year, Breathe Easy Week will focus on the theme of ‘breathlessness’. Breathlessness is one of the most common, yet most ignored, symptoms of lung disease. This Breathe Easy Week, the British Lung Foundation are encouraging anyone who experiences unexpected breathlessness to visit their GP.

Vent-Axia marketing manager Jenny Smith

The BFL will be holding 230 ‘Breathe Easy’ support groups across the UK to raise awareness of lung health and offer support – communicating the seriousness of maintaining lung health and the risk factors that can cause a number of major lung conditions such as lung cancer, asthma, bronchitis and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).

Jenny Smith, marketing manager at Vent-Axia, commented: “Vent-Axia is delighted to be supporting Breathe Easy Week this year. The British Lung Foundation’s aim is that one day everyone will breathe clean air with healthy lungs. At Vent-Axia we support this and are committed to helping to achieve this by providing effective, energy efficient ventilation to help provide good indoor air quality in our homes.”

Indoor air quality & lung health

Indoor air quality is an important issue to lung health. A recent report published by the Royal College of Physicians states that around 40,000 people are dying in the UK every year due to air pollution, caused by exposure to indoor air pollutants such as kitchen products, faulty boilers, open fires and second-hand smoke. Health conditions linked to poor air quality include lung disease, cancer, asthma, stroke and heart disease.

The report is supported by the new BEAMA survey, ‘My Health My Home’ which revealed that over 33% of UK homes are at an elevated or severe risk of having polluted indoor air. The study follows on from the IAQ research ‘The Future of Indoor Air Quality in UK Homes and its Impact on Health’ which found that as new and refurbished homes become ever more air tight, the number of people suffering with asthma could increase by 80%.

The IAQ study also suggested that indoor pollutant levels could increase beyond the World Health Organisation recommended limits. The report pinpointed continuous ventilation and, in new build homes, continuous mechanical ventilation with heat recover (MVHR) as an efficient and effective option to counteract the issue of air pollution.

Continuous ventilation

Continuous ventilation systems work with the natural air infiltration to control the air path through the home – preventing the migration of damaging humidity and pollutants. There are several options available both for new builds and for retrofitting. The latest continuous ventilation systems also offer heat recovery.

For new build homes, Vent-Axia have a number of continuous whole house Mechanical Extract Ventilation (MEV) and mechanical ventilation with heat recovery (MVHR) solutions, such as its Sentinel Kinetic Advance – an MVHR system that is capable of 93% thermal efficiency.

For refurbishment projects, continuous Decentralised Mechanical Extract Ventilation (dMEV) systems, such as Vent-Axia’s Lo-Carbon Response. Vent-Axia also provides dMEV single room heat recovery units, such as its Lo-Carbon Tempra, which can be retrofitted through a 100mm diameter hole in the wall to allow standard wet room extra fans to be easily replaced.