Updated: 24-05-2025
What Are the Advantages and Disadvantages of Air Conditioners for Health?
In these hot sunny days, have you gotten used to air conditioners?
Be aware of the disadvantages of air conditioners on health before you get habituated to them.
Earlier, air conditioning was an extravagance vouchsafed only to the privileged few; but in this avant-garde era, though, it’s a norm in offices and in a few public transport systems; it has become a part of lives for many of the individuals, and they got habituated to it.
Unfortunately, viciously low temperatures & faulty maintenance led to severe health issues, causing common disorders in people & occasional major outbreaks of ailments.
Now let’s have a look at few advantages & disadvantages of Air Conditioner on Health.
Advantages of an Air Conditioner
Extreme heat shows a negative impact on intelligence and on individuals’ physical activity, and the use of air conditioning and the feel of cool air can go some way to correcting this.
- Improves comfort levels at work as well as leisure.
- Enhances job performance
- Results in augmented intellectual and physical activity
- Lower or chilled temperatures diminish the existence of parasites and insects.
- Lower temperature means less sweating, decreasing the risk
- The air conditioning system also assists in excluding external allergens like pollens
- Good installation and maintenance of an air conditioner renew and enhance the quality of the air
Disadvantages of Air Conditioners on Health.
Despite the relief it brings on a hot sunny day, some health problems occur due to the 24/7 running of air conditioning.
The following are some of the disadvantages of air conditioners for health.
- Unexpected changes in humidity and temperature affect an individual’s respiratory system.
- Regular usage of an air Conditioner dries skin and mucous membranes
- Its ambient noise leads to noise pollution.
- Air circulation even transmits infectious respiratory diseases.
- Airborne dust and fungi cause allergic reactions.
- Air conditioning is related to chronic rhinitis & pharyngitis, hoarseness, and throat irritation.
- Air conditioning can worsen eye conditions like conjunctivitis and blepharitis, and also result in problems for contact lens wearers.
- Sometimes, indoor air pollution is greater than outdoor air pollution.
- If indoor air contains allergens, you may suffer from nasal issues, headaches, itchy eyes, difficulty breathing, and dizziness.
- In extreme cases, pneumonia and asthma attacks can also develop.
- Spending long hours in air-conditioned offices or homes, you may also suffer from heat intolerance when you go outside.
- If you suffer from allergies in the summer months, running the air conditioning constantly worsens your symptoms if the AC system has not been regularly maintained.
How can you protect yourself from the disadvantages of air conditioners on health?
Follow the points below to prevent yourself from the disadvantages of air conditioners on health
- Check the manufacturer’s instructions for cleaning or changing the unit’s air filters.
- Open windows and allow fresh air to circulate to flush out pollutants.
- Replace a new AC unit every 10 years.
- Have an HVAC technician perform annual maintenance checks.
- Try using the fan-only mode on your AC unit.
- Ensure to change your cabin air filters every 12,000 to 15,000 miles in your car.
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