Important: This page is general information, not medical advice. It does not recommend or prescribe any treatment. Always consult your doctor or pharmacist before starting, stopping or changing any medicine.
About Indoor Air Pollution
We usually think of air pollution as being outdoors, but the air in your house or office could also be polluted. Sources of indoor pollution include:
- Mold and pollen
- Tobacco smoke
- Household products and pesticides
- Gases such as radon and carbon monoxide
- Materials used in the building such as asbestos, formaldehyde and lead
Sometimes a group of people have symptoms that seem to be linked to time spent in a certain building. There may be a specific cause, such as Legionnaire's disease. Sometimes the cause of the illness cannot be found. This is known as sick building syndrome.
Usually indoor air quality problems only cause discomfort. Most people feel better as soon as they remove the source of the pollution. However, some pollutants can cause diseases that show up much later, such as respiratory diseases or cancer.
Making sure that your building is well-ventilated and getting rid of pollutants can improve the quality of your indoor air.
Environmental Protection Agency
It sits within Poisoning, Toxicology, Environmental Health.
The lead U.S. institute for this subject is the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences.
When to speak to someone. Reading about a topic cannot tell you whether it applies to you. Speak to a doctor or pharmacist if symptoms are severe, sudden, getting worse, or simply not going away — and seek emergency care immediately for chest pain, breathing difficulty, sudden weakness or confusion, or a serious allergic reaction.
Research on Indoor Air Pollution
38 studies areregistered for this condition on ClinicalTrials.gov, the U.S. National Library of Medicine's public registry. A selection is below — the links go straight to the registry entry, not to a summary of ours.
What a registered study does and does not mean. Registration means a study exists and has been declared publicly. It says nothing about whether the treatment being tested works, is safe, or is available to you. Many studies find no benefit — that is what research is for. Never seek out an experimental treatment on the strength of a registry entry alone.
Research currently under way
- Using Indoor Air Filtration to Slow Atherothrombosis Progression in Adults With Ischemic Heart Disease HistoryUniversity of Southern California
- Mitigation of Health Effects in Older Adults With Hypertension by Reducing Exposure to Heat and Air PollutionUniversity of Cyprus
- Occupational and Environmental Exposures Analysis in Interstitial Lung Diseases.Istituto Clinico Humanitas
- Evaluation of a Novel Indoor Air Pollution Intervention Among Older AdultsUniversity of Montana
- Study of Indoor Air Pollutants and Their Impact in Children's Health and WellbeingUniversity Hospital, Montpellier
- Home Health and Air Pollution StudyColorado State University
Research already completed
- Assessing the Health Impact of Indoor Air Purification Using Health Data Obtained From Apple Watch WearersNew York University Abu Dhabi
- Developing and Evaluating an Indoor Air Pollution Intervention Among Cardiovascular Patients: the AIRWISE StudyUniversity of Montana
- Solar Lighting to Reduce Indoor Air Pollution in Rural UgandaMassachusetts General Hospital
- Indoor Air Quality for Black Adults With Uncontrolled AsthmaColumbia University
- The Effect of Personal Protective Aids on Hypertension and Diabetes in People Exposed to High Levels of Air PollutionMedstar Health Research Institute
- AIM to Improve Asthma: Airflow Improvements During Meal-PrepUniversity of California, Berkeley
Study data from ClinicalTrials.gov, a service of the U.S. National Library of Medicine. Retrieved 2026-07-30. Registry entries are supplied by study sponsors and investigators; ClinicalTrials.gov does not verify their scientific validity. PocketsInfo is not affiliated with, and not endorsed by, the NLM or the NIH.
Where to read more
Rather than paraphrase, we point you to the primary sources. Every link below is to a government health agency, a national institute or a recognised medical body — grouped by what you are trying to find out.
Start Here
- Clean Air at HomeAmerican Lung Association
- Introduction to Indoor Air QualityEnvironmental Protection Agency
Prevention and Risk Factors
- Air Cleaners and Air Filters in the HomeEnvironmental Protection Agency
- Ozone Generators That Are Sold as Air CleanersEnvironmental Protection Agency
- Should You Have the Air Ducts in Your Home Cleaned?Environmental Protection Agency
Related Issues
- Office Building Occupant's Guide to Indoor Air QualityEnvironmental Protection Agency
Clinical Trials
- ClinicalTrials.gov: Air Pollution, IndoorNational Institutes of Health
Medical subject headings
Clinicians and researchers index this subject under Air Pollution, Indoor. These are the terms to use when searching medical literature.
This page is built from the MedlinePlus health topic record for Indoor Air Pollution, a service of the U.S. National Library of Medicine (NLM), National Institutes of Health. Information is from MedlinePlus.gov. PocketsInfo is not affiliated with, and is not endorsed by, the NLM or the NIH. Retrieved 30 July 2026.