>Its results suggested that certain common indoor plants, like pothos, ivy and ficus, may absorb carbon dioxide and release oxygen through photosynthesis, and provide a natural way to remove toxic volatile organic compounds (VOCs) such as benzene, formaldehyde and trichloroethylene from the air.
I don't understand why there's a "may" in front of "absorb carbon dioxide and release oxygen through photosynthesis"
That's OK. The maintenance and visual aspect of plants can be good for mental health.
If you want cleaner air you have to move air through a filter at high speed. I have some consumer grade purifiers but the Corsi–Rosenthal Box [1] is easily the most effective of what I have. Both in feeling and measured. And it costs less than $100.
[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corsi%E2%80%93Rosenthal_Box
I'm not surprised. I've always thought you'd need a crazy amount of plants to make any meaningful difference to the air quality in your home.
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Houseplants need our help. They are in need of emotional support people and you should adopt one today and just love it, try not to judge it.
Potted plants got a big rush from movies like Silent Running, that a tightly woven biosphere could engage in complete symbiosis with people, bunnies and Joan Baez.
Then as NASA gave plants the cold shoulder, the idea that plants were collectively 'the lungs of the world' took hold completely and gave them solace. House plants stood a little taller and dreamed themselves into a crucial role in keeping their critter-buddies alive, with help from their distant friends in the Amazon through open doors and windows.
Then cruel scientists popped that dream bubble, and awarded the 'lungs of the world' role to bluegreen algae in the oceans. The plants who must struggle to put out every leaf were eclipsed by little things that multiplied all day long.
So houseplants have become neurotic and anxious.