Indoor Plants Clean Air? A Big Myth

Tuesday 18th of February 2020

Indoor Plants Clean Air? A Big Myth

Indoor gardening has become a popular trend, and many of the houseplants sold to eager consumers were marketed as great ways to purify the home. However, new research continues to show that houseplants do next to nothing to purify the air in your home.

In a study recently published in the Journal of Exposure Science and Environmental Epidemiology, expert Michael Waring and his study coauthor reviewed 12 previously published scientific studies that tested 196 plants over the past decade.

Plants are technically removing a minute amount of airborne toxins, but, “to have it compete with air exchange, you would need an infeasible amount of plants,” he says. That’s 10 plants per square foot!

If you had to choose between a $400 air cleaner and a $30 plant, it’s sad to say this but the plant is not going to improve the air quality.