Here are 9 of the easiest ways to improve the air you’re breathing inside your home.

Winter’s just around the corner, and so are the days when you’ll keep your home closed up tight in an effort to keep the cold air out and the warm air in.

Unfortunately keeping that cold air out has its drawbacks – it means that you may be breathing stale, sometimes toxic air for months at a time.

Luckily, there are 9 beautiful ways to improve the air quality in your home all year round – and because I know you’re super busy with your life, I’ve included the ones that are almost impossible to kill.

What are these 9 things – houseplants of course!
Here are 9 of my favourites that will purify the air in your home all year long.

1. Spider Plants – one of the easiest to grow – even for those of us with a “black thumb.” This stunner loves bright, indirect light.It battles carbon monoxide, formaldehyde, xylene and benzene.

2. Golden Pothos – this is my favourite of all the “impossible to kill” houseplants because it will thrive in a sunny room or a shady corner staying green all the time. Plus, it will survive even if you forget to water it for a few weeks! It’s great at filtering out formaldehyde so put it beside your new furniture, your new rugs, and especially in your garage because car exhaust is full of formaldehyde.

3. Aloe Vera – comes with a bonus that it also holds an anti-inflammatory, wound healing gel in it leaves. The only thing you have to worry about with this easy to grow plant, is to make sure it’s not sitting in standing water.It removes formaldehyde found in most household items including your new furniture, clothes, bedding and towels.

4. Snake Plant – this one will thrive in low light which makes it a perfect addition to your bathroom. It will filter out all that formaldehyde common in cleaning products, toilet paper, tissues and personal care products.

5. Gerber/Gerbera Daisy – this pretty flowering plant will do well in a room where it gets lots of light. It’s particularly effective at removing the trichloroethylene that you bring home with your dry cleaning, plus it filters out benzene too.

6. Chrysanthemum – you know the one we all love to hate, and pass by every time we’re in the grocery store. Well, next time you see one, you might want to pick it up and take it home with you because not only will it brighten your day with its lovely flowers, but it will filter some nasty stuff out of your air. It will help filter out benzene which is commonly found in glue, paint, plastics and detergent.

7. Ficus/weeping fig – grows up to 10 feet tall – to beautifully fill a bright corner in any room. It removes benzene, formaldehyde and trichloroethylene.

8. Areca Palm – this tropical prefers partial sun and well drained soil. It is known as an all-round general air purifier. English Ivy – is really simple to grow, and looks great on a kitchen windowsill. It reduces airborne fecal-matter particles, and will filter out formaldehyde.

9. Peace Lily – blooms fragrant flowers throughout the summer, with light green leaves that enhance any shady room the rest of the year. This hardy plant removes ammonia, benzene, formaldehyde and trichloroethylene.

So there you have it, Mother Nature’s gift to us of superior indoor air quality all year round!