Bucks teenager's indoor pollution guide could save your lungs during lockdown

Tom Hunt, who lives in Chesham has written an indoor air pollution survival guide, after testing the air inside his home during the coronavirus lockdown.

Baggy the black Labrador made headlines worldwide earlier this year when Tom strapped an air pollution monitor to her collar and discovered that at dog height, air pollution was so much worse than at the adult height and above the Government tests it at.

Part of Tom and Baggy’s research was focused on the Wendover Woods, where they found that fumes from idling cars settle in the trees and make the area’s air pollution surprisingly high.

Tom, who has called the book Baggy and Me: An Indoor Air Pollution Survival Guide, said: “After we made our discovery so many people were interested in what we found out, we were in newspapers, on TV and appeared at Crufts.

“But the air outside isn’t as important at the moment as we are all spending time inside. So I started testing in our house too to see what was going on.”

And, Tom found that there are lots of habits we are all guilty of which can expose us to harmful air pollution indoors, such as spray deodorants, using talcum powder, and even brushing Baggy’s fur without his bedroom window open.

Tom said: “I decided to write the guide to help other people make the changes that we have made in our house. Coronavirus attacks the lungs and we all need our lungs to be as healthy as possible.

“When lockdown started my stepmum Candice had to isolate for two weeks after returning from Canada and it was a really stressful time, I’m missing my friends too like crazy. But doing the guide and spreading this message with Baggy has been a really good thing to focus on.”

The project has been a team effort and the Hunt family have all made changes, including Tom’s big sister Molly who is now not allowed to do her make-up in the bathroom without the window open.

Tom’s Dad Matt, who has given up vaping in the house as a result of the experiment, said: “We are all so proud of Tom, he’s made a positive out of a negative and carried on his campaign in a new way.”

Tom’s book, entitled Baggy and Me: An Indoor Air Pollution Survival Guide is available now via Amazon.