health

Moisture-related indicators indoors are, e.g. visible mould and damp spots, condensation onthe inside of window panes, detached floor covering materials, flooding and bad odours. Suchindicators are frequently found and are reported to appear in 25-80% of the buildingsworldwide (Bornehag et al., 2001). Dampness has also been identified as a major risk factorfor, e.g. respiratory symptoms such as asthma, cough and wheezing among both children andadults (Bornehag et al., 2001).

We measured the temperature, relative air humidity (RH), carbon dioxide (CO2), ozone (O3),nitrogen dioxide (NO2), and formaldehyde levels in 30 classrooms in 10 schools in Shanghai.The pupils received a questionnaire; 1414 participated (99%). The temperature was 13-21C,and RH was 36-82%. The 1000 ppm CO2 level was exceeded in 45% of the classrooms.Indoor formaldehyde was 3-20 g/m3. The concentration of O3 was low, both indoors (

This study reports the attained indoor air quality in new buildings when using different M1-classified finishing materials and ventilation systems. It is practical to use the TVOC value asa reference in comparing material emissions, their effect on indoor air quality and infollowing the effect of different parameters on the indoor air quality. But is TVOC a relevanttool from the health point of view to be used in characterizing the indoor air as the singlecompounds contained in the TVOC value do have very different effects on the health andperceived indoor air quality?

Indoor chemistry is receiving attention due to the possible health effects of products ofreactions between indoor pollutants, and the potential for such products to contribute to indoorparticulate matter (PM). Much of the focus with respect to indoor chemistry has been onterpene/ozone reaction products, since terpenes are ubiquitous indoors, ozone readilyinfiltrates from outdoors, and the reaction rates are comparable to typical air exchange rates inmany indoor settings. Several studies have documented particle formation from reactionsbetween ozone and a-pinene or d-limonene.

This paper describes the results of indoor air quality and ventilation rate during winter in 12Japanese houses that are suspected to be sick houses, judging from the occupants healthcondition. Three methods of measuring the ventilation rate, i.e. the PFT method, the constantconcentration method and the measurement of airflow at inlet/outlet, are compared. Each ofthe methods has its own characteristics and differences in the results obtained are shown. Forindoor air quality, formaldehyde and VOC concentration in the air and the spaces in the insidewall are measured.

The quality of our indoor environments affects well-being and productivity, and risks fordiverse diseases are increased by indoor air pollutants, surface contamination with toxinsand microbes, and contact among people at home, at work, in transportation, and in manyother public and private places. Offered here is an overview of nearly a century of researchdirected at understanding indoor environments and health, current research needs, andpolicy initiatives that need to be addressed in order to have the healthiest possible builtenvironments.

In recent years, the World Health Organization has published a database with detailedestimates of the global burden of death and morbidity by disease, age, sex, and region. Justthis year, a WHO-organized international team expanded this effort by systematicallyestimating the individual burdens for some two dozen more distal risk factors by age, sex,and region, including, inter alia, malnutrition, hypertension, tobacco use, obesity, unsafesex, and several environmental and occupational risk factors.

For a long time in the history of the productivity study, the effects of environmental factors onlyon the performance had been focused. However, previous studies on the impact of theenvironment upon performance of mental tasks generally conclude that productivity research issomewhat confusing because the results are sometimes conflicting. In the controlled chamber,subjects may be highly motivated for a short time period, so it is very difficult to find thedifference of performances. In this paper, we introduce a second parameter : fatigue. Threesubjective experiments are reported.

The activities of indoor environmental research have increased significantly since the firstenergy crisis of the early 1970s. Since then, research has produced many significant resultsthat have already been put into practice. These include the health effects and prevention ofenvironmental pollution by tobacco smoke, formaldehyde, radon, asbestos, etc. The healthrisks of these contaminants have been verified, and appropriate measures have been taken bythe authorities, as well as by the building industry and product manufacturers.

Following a comprehensive review of research over the 150-year history of mechanical ventilation, the recent European Multidisciplinary Scientific Consensus Meeting (EUROVEN) considered that only 20 studies relating ventilation (i.e. outside air supply rate per person) to human response were conclusive. From them, a small number of conclusions were drawn, and some very large gaps in our knowledge of this important area of research were identified. Taking these as the starting point, this paper formulates a strategy for evaluating IAQ effects on people.