I put plants in all of my kids rooms. I never did a purifier, but we don't live near a freeway.

We use an air purifier, but mostly as a white noise machine. It cleans the air and helps keep my baby asleep with her loud brother playing outside her door.

I like the ideas of plants in the bedrooms, I will have to borrow that idea. They make less noise and are way more attractive.

I have plants too, but I do keep wondering how much they really clean the air. It makes me think that an air purifier would do a better job.

A lot of the modern cleaning products are both abrasive to skin and airways and make the rooms so clean that whatever bacteria that come there have no natural enemies. Water, soap and vinegar is all that is needed. The same is true for clothes. Always wash everything new a couple of times before putting it anywhere near your child, or yourself.

There are certain plants that help purify the air more than others. Wiping floors and surfaces with a moist mop or cloth regularly also helps to keep down the amount of particles in the air.

That said, I've also been thinking of air purifiers. It seems as if certain kinds can actually be dangerous (those that ionize the air and/or produce ozone). IKEA has one called Patrull that seems ok but I too need to learn more.

I'm British and I had practically never heard of air purifiers for common use in homes before I came to this site, nor humidifiers. Shove a damp sponge on a radiator or put a few plants around the place, sure, but it seems a bit much to buy yet more gadgets.

We all have air purifiers in our rooms. I found one that has washable filters to keep costs down. I also have plants in all of our rooms. We have had air purifiers since the children were babies and we love that they double as white noise.

I keep one going continuously in my kids' room, for white noise. Their room is adjacent to a very busy alley with regular beeping from garbage trucks, car horns, etc. Plus there's noise from people in the rest of our small condo. When my oldest was a baby, it made a huge difference in his ability to stay asleep. Two of the four of us have asthma (and our neighbor smokes), so I don't mind that it's removing junk from the air.

I don't think people understand the purpose of purifiers. Plants will not remove dust particles or germs from the air.
Plants will do nothing to purify the air, it will replenish the air with a specific amount of oxygen. Please understand the purpose and functions of each before advising people to use plants instead of purifiers.

http://www.amazon.com/How-Grow-Fresh-Air-Plants/dp/0140262431/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1331590767&sr=8-2 is a wonderful book that I use and loan out about plants for living spaces. Certain plants do take out certain chemicals from the air.
here is a link about some helpful pllants http://www.treehugger.com/lawn-garden/healthy-office-plants.html

I tried one in my bedroom for a while. My allergies actually got worse and the room had a nasty ozone smell. I returned the purifier, and would never put one in my child's room.

There are different kinds of purifiers. Ionizers and ozone-generators release ozone, I'm not sure if this is what MBM had. We have HEPA air filters in our bedrooms (by Holmes I think) and they do noticeably reduce my allergies to cat dander. I'm not sure how well it works against pollutants though.

Keep in mind that human immune systems are very well-developed over millennia. Air purifiers may make us think we're better off but their actual benefits might be negligible. They also need to be maintained scrupulously or they might be a source of pollution themselves as mold, etc. attach and grow in the devices.

(I notice one person referred to cat dander. If you have a pet, that one air purifier in one room is not going to do much for the whole house.)

As for plants, the psychological effect may also be stronger than any actual benefit. For plants, there's the added complication that they will put pollen into the air that might worsen any allergies in the family.

From what I know about allergies, there is a genetic component, but there is also an environmental component that runs counter to what we might think. Early exposure to allergens and dirts and such is actually beneficial in helping avoid allergies. Children in households with pets are much less likely to be allergic to animals (of course there is a self-fulfilling genetic component to that too - parents allergic to pets won't have them.) It's a tough call being near a highway though - I don't think any human body actually reacts well to gas exhaust. But I know there are also ozone concerns with a lot of air purifiers.

I have plants all over the house, but we also have a medical grade air purifier because I and my older son (4) have allergies which quickly develop into asthma or asthma-like symptoms. My sister is also very sensitive to anything in the air, because she lives in an area with high air pollution, so we use the purifier when needed to take a breather. It gives our lungs and immune systems a break, interrupting the allergen exposure-reaction cycle so we can heal up. It's been a big help. We also live in the PNW, and have lots of issues with mold, and the purifier helps with that as well. As I said before, we only run it when we need to, otherwise we get as much fresh air as possible :)

If we were living in this apartment for more that the remaining month, I would. We live in an urban area, and every week when I wipe the window sills the rag turns BLACK. I don't believe in over sanitizing houses, but it's gross to think of breathing all that in.

We have a humidifier that has a filter to purify the air as well as cool it. We need it where we live in Calgary, Canada as it is so dry here (dryer than the Sahara in Winter). We all cough w/o it. The kids need it esp and it helps with illnesses like croup.

We have Holmes HEPA air purifiers in our two bedrooms. We use them specifically for white noise, as our house is tiny and it helps us sleep. The bonus, I feel, is that it helps filter the air. We have two kitties, live fairly close to two highways, and we rarely get ill. We also have a house that has lots of windows that we can open to air out the place. I like the ones we have and they've been working great for many years.

oops, sorry, we have two Honeywell Quiet Care air purifiers, not Holmes.

I probably won't unless I get kids who have allergies to dust, pollen, etc. There doesn't seem to be much evidence supporting the use of air purifiers to help with asthma, so I probably won't be using it for that. I will use a humidifier though, since I realized that winter air can be really dry, and as a person who grew up in the tropics, my nose gets really bloody during winter.

Seconding ELATEETAK comment: nobody has heard of air purifier in France either. Pediatricians, doctors, books: not one has tackled that subject with us. There is a big campaign going on right now in France for fighting indoor air pollution, because people don't open their windows as much as they should, but no ad mentions that air purifier thing. Must be an American way of fighting air pollution; here, it's all about opening the windows.

However, hospitals use air humidifiers for very small babies, especially the ones born long before the pregnancy term (I do not know the specific word for that, hope you get my meaning), because it seems that those babies do not regulate their temperature as well as others. Parents are encouraged to keep the habit as long as necessary, for medical reasons.

So, I also vote for "gadget", unless medically recommended. Plus, I hate the noise, whether white or any other color, and have always had trouble sleeping in American apartments or hotel because there's always some noise. I don't mind the street, having lived in Paris for a long time with thin windows, but I hate machine sound.

I live in Spain and I'm not sure I've ever seen an air purifier in a store (of course I haven't been looking either). I agree that unless your child has an allergy or asthma then you probably don't need one unless your doctor says otherwise. However, two of my sisters have terrible dust allergies and neither of them developed these afflictions until AFTER they moved out of our parents house as adults and began living on their own. I can tell you that my childhood home was full of mess and dust and we lived in South Beach so I really don't think your environment has much to do with it. This is just my opinion of course. :)

Ok - BUT. What about Lead? Lead poisoning via DUST is a big thing here in the States. HEPA filters clean down to size .3mu particles and lead is size 3.0 so by default it should get easily caught by a purifier. What do you guys think about putting HEPA filter air purifiers in older homes that the EPA cautions might be lead hazardous? (I agree ozone and ionization are probably more trouble than they are worth)

get a humidifier.

If you're worried about lead poisoning, move. Or have professional abatement done. (Which cost my SIL over $40,000 and 4 weeks in a hotel.) You do not want to expose your kids to lead, period.

Prolonged low level exposure to smog and particulates can lead to serious health impairments like asthma, but also increase the likelihood of heart conditions later in life. You probably already knew that and that's why you're posting the question. Best to check out the local air quality control board data before deciding plants v. air purifier. If you've got a high particulate count in your area (Pm10, Pm 5), you're going to want a high quality purifier because the plants and some cheaper purifiers won't absorb the particulates. If smog is the issue, having lots of plants can absorb some of the carbon and increase the oxygen content. (also they're pretty). When I lived in Bakersfield, Ca, which at the time had some of the worst air quality (both particulates and smog) in the country, I used both. The other thing to consider is getting a good vacuum cleaner with filters, and installing hard floors instead of carpets where you can.

We have the Germ Guardian Air Sanitizer... A bit different than a purifier, kills the germies in the air. Main reason we got it was to put by the diaper pail, which is genius because it takes away the diaper stinkies.

We have the Honeywell HEPA airfilter in our bedroom as well as our 2 year olds room. It has a long life HEPA filter can be vacuumed clean and a carbon pre-filter helps reduce household odors like pet smells. When I vaccume out all of the dust it has caputred i know it must be working. I also replace the air filters to my central air system frequently and have alot of indoor plants. Even if the indoor plant don't do much to improve the air quality they look pretty and make me feel good. I also love the air filter as it doubles as a sound machine.

I really need to buy a air purifier. I also live beside busy street close to a hospital. My apartement always gets dusty so fast. I have 2 boys 20 and 15 who do have a mild asthmama. Mostly allergic.
I heard of a new technology but not sure if its for me. I am also looking for something to help with dust because of living in a old apartement. This is the website if anyone wants to take a look http://www.activecleanair.com/index.html
I am also considering a different one I saw at Costco
http://www.costco.ca/Asept-Air-5-stage-Ultimate-Air-Purifier.product.10350290.html
Not sure which one to get or maybe neither is good.
Can i get any recomendations?