Just because Realtors don’t spend time in hazardous environments doesn’t mean they don’t face job-related health challenges. But armed with information about fostering healthier environments, work and lifestyle habits, Realtors can live a healthy and productive lifestyle. 

Avoid Air Pollution

Most of the time people associate air pollution with big cities, but actually, the U.S. EPA reports that the air quality in homes is likely to be far worse than air outdoors. The pollutants come from many of the products typically used inside like cleaners, air fresheners, candles, building products, fabrics, dry cleaning and anything perfumed. 

These products may emit volatile organic compounds (VOCs) that are known respiratory irritants and worst case, cause nerve and organ damage, and may cause cancer. VOCs also cause flu-like systems, sore throats and headaches. It is possible to avoid VOCs altogether, but it does take effort. Realtors, in particular, have little control over the environments in which they spend time. It’s not uncommon to spend time in homes where many of these products have recently been used to clean and perfume them. 

Realtors who specialize in new home sales have even greater exposure to VOCs, since they’re in environments where the gases from new materials are concentrated. Unless the builder does an exceptional job of choosing materials and products low in VOCs, the homes will off-gas VOCs for months, especially if they lack continual fresh air ventilation. 

Avoidance is the best strategy for dealing with VOCs. Some homeowners are aware of the health risks they pose and have found non-VOC alternatives. Suggest to your clients that they avoid air fresheners and strong commercial cleaning products before showing their homes. If the housekeepers for the model homes use commercial spray cleaners, explain that the aerosol cleaners make everyone more vulnerable to the health threats they pose. 

Get More Exercise

• Skip the elevator and take the stairs instead as long as it’s a reasonable distance. Swap out the heels for flats or athletic shoes to avoid injuries to your feet, legs and back if you make this a habit. Going up and down the stairs gives you the same workout you’d get at the gym if you used their stair climbers. 
• Weather permitting, park further away from your destinations and walk instead when it’s practical. This strategy probably won’t work when you meet someone to show a property, but it will give you an aerobic workout when you’re doing your everyday shopping or parking at the office. 
• Get a standing desk. Human bodies are meant to move and a standing desk promotes better posture and movement throughout the workday. You don’t need to stand all day long to reap the health benefits. You could stand while you talk on the phone or get up from your desk to get up to get a drink of water instead of pouring it at your desk. 

Eat Well

The type, quality and quantity of the food you eat makes a big difference in your overall health. As much as possible, eat low on the food chain. If nature doesn’t provide it, avoid it. Plenty of fruit and vegetables will give you the nutrition each cell in your body needs to perform at optimal levels. If organic produce isn’t an option, be sure you wash the produce well before you eat or cook with it to flush away the herbicides and pesticides. 

Avoid processed food or anything synthetic. Some foods are nothing more than chemical mixtures that don’t do anything to promote health. Read labels and don’t let the word “natural” sway your thinking. In the food industry, virtually everything is natural. It does imply healthy, but in reality, it probably isn’t.