5 great air-purifying indoor plants

5 great air-purifying indoor plants

Here's an easy and affordable - and beautiful - way to combat the presence of pollutants in the air: keeping houseplants.

According to a NASA's Clean Air Study in the late 1980s - the American aeronautics and aerospace agency was looking for ways to clean the air in its space stations - certain indoor plants have the ability to remove harmful substances like benzene, formaldehyde and ammonia.

NASA calls plants "nature's life support system".

Plants absorb some of the particulates from the air at the same time they take in carbon dioxide, which is processed into oxygen through photosynthesis.

Microorganisms associated with some of these plants, or which are present in the potting soil, are also responsible for much of the cleaning effect.

Here are 5 easily available, low maintenance plants to get you started:

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