National Sleep Foundation Partners With Austin Air Systems

National Sleep Foundation Launches Air Purification Product for the Bedroom

WASHINGTON, Jan. 14 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The National Sleep Foundation (NSF) is pleased to announce its partnership with Austin Air Systems, a leading indoor air cleaner manufacturer, to launch a new National Sleep Foundation-branded air purification system specifically designed for the sleep environment.  The National Sleep Foundation Bedroom Machine by Austin Air will make its debut at the Big Sleep Show in Washington, DC on January 16, 2010.

Developed and designed by Austin Air, the National Sleep Foundation Bedroom Machine will use an advanced HEPA filter system, designed to remove common bedroom pollutants, such as cooking gasses, dry cleaning chemicals, and other airborne irritants and allergens.  The unit was selected for use in a new Johns Hopkins University School of Public Health study on asthma and bedroom air quality and a number of University of Buffalo studies on environment and asthma.  

"The National Sleep Foundation is pleased to introduce the first bedroom product to carry the National Sleep Foundation name," said David M. Cloud, NSF's Chief Executive Officer. "This is a very advanced bedroom air purification system, made by one of the most-respected manufacturers in the industry. We are proud to be working with the experts at Austin Air to make the National Sleep Foundation Bedroom Machine available so people can breathe cleaner air as they sleep."

"There are huge implications for our collaboration," said Richard Taylor, Founder and President of Austin Air Systems, adding, "Respiratory illness is one of the primary causes of sleep disturbance. The medical evidence coming out of the research now provides the most compelling argument possible of the necessity of clean air in promoting healthy sleep."

A Johns Hopkins study, published in the February 2009 edition of Environmental Health Perspectives, found an association between high levels of indoor particulate matter pollution and the severity of asthma symptoms among children.

"The results of the recent Johns Hopkins study are important," says Thomas Balkin, PhD, Chairman of the National Sleep Foundation's Board of Directors. "The potential health benefits of improving bedroom air quality, particularly when people are reclining in bed, are often overlooked. Right now, the Bedroom Machine is being used in several studies to advance the science of sleep and air quality."

The National Sleep Foundation Bedroom Machine by Austin Air is available nationally through Austin's dealer network and will be available through National Sleep Foundation's member sleep centers and web site, www.sleepfoundation.org.  It retails for $599.

About the National Sleep Foundation

The National Sleep Foundation is dedicated to improving sleep health and safety through education, public awareness, and advocacy.  It is well-known for its annual Sleep in America^TM poll. The Foundation is a charitable, educational and scientific not-for-profit organization located in Washington, DC. Its membership includes researchers and clinicians focused on sleep medicine, professionals in the health, medical and science fields, individuals, patients, people affected by drowsy driving and more than 900 healthcare facilities throughout North America. For more information about the National Sleep Foundation and a directory of its sleep center members, please visit www.sleepfoundation.org.

About Austin Air

The Austin Air Healthmate was born out of necessity as President, Richard Taylor, undertook the task of improving what many doctors and specialists couldn't: his wife's quality of life.

Since his wife, Joyce, was a child, she had difficulty breathing. An endless round of doctors and specialists didn't make any difference; neither did medications or dietary changes. She suffered from this debilitating condition for years, until Richard realized the obvious. The air Joyce was breathing was contaminated.

Drawing upon technology used in medical facilities, Richard reproduced the only environment where Joyce had relief of her symptoms, "the hospital clean room." Using True Medical HEPA, surrounded with Activated Carbon he created a filter that addressed all the issues related to environmental particulate contamination and chemical toxicity. Within a week, Joyce was finally sleeping undisturbed through the night.

Today, at 480,000 square feet, Austin has the largest air cleaner manufacturing facility in the world, producing everything in-house from filter, to metal forming, to the final paint.

Austin Air is extremely proud that its air cleaners are the product of choice by leading doctors throughout the United States and many other parts of the world. As a matter of fact, there is hardly a country in the world today where an Austin Air cleaner is not hard at work cleaning the air in someone's home.

SOURCE National Sleep Foundation