Educational Reads Archives

I had become very excited knowing that my due date was soon approaching and even while 37 weeks pregnant, I couldn’t ignore the urge to begin nesting. It started in my toddler’s room when I suddenly started thinking of different ways to rotate their bunkbed. Thankfully, there is no other way because it’s too big and well… I was too. However, I found much more to do for my 2-bedroom apartment, but then the weekend came. I was diagnosed with COVID-19. Yet, apparently, that wasn’t enough. My 2-year-old daughter was also diagnosed with COVID-19 as well and my 3-year-old son was diagnosed with Strep, and flu. Even the doctor said he’d never seen anything like that with a family under one roof. However, my children attend the same daycare, but in separate buildings, so I could see how.

At this point, I am back at home, and me and my family are on lockdown, isolating ourselves and trying our hardest to not contaminate anymore of the house. The baby was coming in 2 weeks and as much as I should have been resting, I couldn’t stop staring at it. My HVAC system had been slightly open since around the last time it was serviced. It was missing a screw and could no longer fight the urge to fix it. So, my best friend and I decided to open it and couldn’t believe what we were seeing. I am no engineer, but thanks to Cosmos Air Filternomics™ class, I know about filters and HVAC. The filters that were in my HVAC system were Cosmos Air filters, so that was great to see, however they were entirely too small! I immediately went into panic mode.

The last time I had an issue with my water, my building’s maintenance-man told me there was nothing he could do. I then reached out to the building manager, who told me there was nothing she could do because they don’t provide the water. I thought to myself “My Mom owns a house, but she doesn’t provide her own water either.” So, I ended up having to take extra steps just to make sure I cooked and cleaned me and my kids with clean water, until one day the entire building’s water turned a muddy-brown. What was my one concern has now turned into hundreds of concerns. Had they not neglected to investigate the issue, it could have been prevented and saved their company money.

Although my HVAC systems won’t affect the entire building, I knew if I had the wrong size filters… more than likely everyone does. Let me tell you why this is unacceptable.

I called about my filters and informed them of all of this. Then the baby came. While I was in the hospital, maintenance came and re-serviced the HVAC systems. When I arrived home, I was eager to welcome baby home, but I was also eager to check out my new Cosmos filters. Unfortunately, the service job was even worse than the last. This created a concern with a newborn in the house.

If premature wear and tear doesn’t get your building manager’s attention, then don’t worry. Below are 7 easy steps that you would take to hold them accountable.

Let’s face it. Dealing with building maintenance can be a headache. But when your basic needs, like clean air, are being neglected, it’s time to take action. Dirty and incorrect air filters aren’t just a minor inconvenience; they can impact your health and well-being. Thankfully, I knew what to do to take the right steps towards cleaner air. Now my family are COVID, Strep and Flu-FREE and my newborn baby is safe. Thank you, to Cosmos Air, who understands that clean air means a cleaner future.

Is it a harmless sniffle from seasonal allergies, or something more serious lurking? That tickle in your throat, the persistent cough – are they signs of an infection, or just your immune system overreacting to pollen? Figuring out the difference between allergies and infections can be tricky, especially when symptoms overlap. But understanding the root cause is crucial, not just for your own comfort, but also to prevent the spread of illness.

With allergy season coming in quickly, it’s best to refresh our memories and be prepared for what to look out for when our immune system turns on. COVID-19 significantly altered baseline infection rates and led to fluctuations in other respiratory viruses. For example, common cold viruses, influenza and RSV which heavily impacted children. In Maryland alone, RSV causes more than 30 deaths per year in children, mostly infants. CDC reports 100-300 children worldwide.

I remember being on the bus in high school and always hearing one of my colleagues snorting and making scratching noises with her throat. She’d often sneeze and would blow her nose so much that I was convinced she had infinite snot. I take after my mom, so I am a bit of a germaphobe, and I couldn’t help or hide the twisted faces I would make when noticing her tendencies. However, she always had the same response…. “It’s allergies.” Back then, I didn’t understand fully what that meant, but now, I do.

Allergies are the immune system’s response to harmless substances. They are not caused by pathogens and therefore, are not contagious. On the other hand, infections are caused by pathogens like viruses and bacteria. These pathogens are transmissible and can spread through airborne droplets, direct contact, indirect contact (like touching contaminated surfaces) and bodily fluids.

One of the main symptoms people use to differentiate allergies and infections is the color of the mucus being clear, yellow or green. While this may give you a decent self-diagnosis, it is important to understand that allergies can also take on a yellow hue. This is due to the presence of inflammatory cells that are present in the mucus. Also important, if your allergies cause a sinus congestion, this allows your body an environment and opportunity for bacteria to grow, thus causing a secondary infection and… yellow mucus. Now, if you have yellow or green mucus accompanied with other symptoms such as fever and pain, your scale is unfortunately tipping over to the infection side.

In general, the best way to understand your body is to know what it needs beforehand. It’s important to take preventative measures so that you and your family have the best shields against both allergies and infections.

While allergy pills aren’t ideal for your runny-nose toddler, foods with anti-inflammatory properties are. Look for and cook foods with Omega-3 Fatty Acids, Turmeric and Ginger. You can also weaponize your body with Vitamin C and Quercetin-Rich Foods like Onions, Apples and Berries to defend against viruses.

Lastly, being aware of your environment is a huge factor. If you find yourself heading to a high foot-traffic area, prepare yourself with a mask. Just like the body, places with poor ventilation and filtration can also create an environment for bacterial growth. To be aware of what’s inside of your body is to be aware of what is outside of your body.

That’s why Cosmos Air will always be there to back you, your family, friends and coworkers up. Life is a delicacy and when we realize that we have full control over ourselves, we can then understand that we have full control over everything else. Allergy season may always be there, but your allergies do not have to be. There may always be an environment that is armed against your health, but with the right preparation and a Cosmos call away, that battle is already won.

By the time March is around the corner, most Marylanders are fed up with the random snow days and are ready for the weather to finally break! This week, we got hit with a snowstorm that covered the Midwest and East Coast. While some people in Maryland grazed just one inch of snowfall yesterday, others got up to 8.6 inches. This may seem quite unusual to someone who isn’t local, considering the fact that we just experienced some of the warmest weather of the year within the same week. So, why exactly are we getting snowfall?

We forget to recognize the beauty of Mother Earth and the fact that the Earth is a physical body, performing many operations that the human body naturally does. If you are in Maryland, you may have witnessed a slight uptick in cold and flu within the last weeks. Well, while taking the Cosmos Filternomics class, I made note of something that still amazes me when I see snowfall. I learned that after it snows, we are able to breathe in some of the CLEANEST air that the Earth naturally provides throughout the year.

When we are young, they teach us about photosynthesis, and how the trees produce breathing air from changing carbon dioxide into oxygen. If you are familiar with a carbon air filter in an HVAC system, it’s pretty comparable to that. It is all a cycle. Now snow on the other hand, with its naturally complex and intricate structure, becomes billions of small air filters for the outdoors. Snowflakes trap air pollutants, bringing them out of the air and to the ground to be washed away.

Funny enough, the snowiest city in the United States is New York City, which also happens to be the busiest city in the U.S. Would it be safe to say that the Earth gathers this data, the same as we do? Think about a building with heavy foot traffic. The building engineer would have to have some great filters in place to prevent airborne illnesses from developing or traveling between occupants. So, the next time we have a random snow day, think about and appreciate the natural filtration within our ecosystems!

If you’re interested in learning about Filternomics and earning a certification in HVAC, please call 301-925-1604 to get more information on the next available classes. Help us keep our buildings green and clean as the Earth does for us.