A healthy home environment?

Our plain-English summary of A healthy home environment?, by J. Manuel (Environmental Health Perspectives, 1999).

The study

• Author: J. Manuel
• Journal: Environmental Health Perspectives
• Published: 1999;107(7):A352-7
• Cited by: 15 articles, as counted by NIH iCite
• Read it: PubMed · Publisher · Free full text

Abstract

Over the past seven years, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has consistently ranked indoor air pollution among the top five risks to public health. One of the most dangerous indoor air pollutants is carbon monoxide (CO). CO can be lethal, but perhaps more important, many people suffer ill health from chronic, often undetected exposure to low levels of this gas, resulting in fatigue, headache, dizziness, nausea, and vomiting. Another dangerous pollutant is volatile organic compounds (VOCs), which come from sources including building products, cleaning agents, and paints. One VOC, formaldehyde, can act as an irritant to the conjunctiva and upper and lower respiratory tract. Formaldehyde is also known to cause nasal cancer in test animals.

In plain English

This was a news feature in the "Focus" section of Environmental Health Perspectives, not a research study, and it reported no original data. It described hazards in U.S. homes, citing other researchers' studies, agency statements and interviews. It noted that the EPA's Science Advisory Board had consistently ranked indoor air pollution among the top five risks to public health, and it called combustion gases the most dangerous home hazards, with carbon monoxide by far the most hazardous of them. Other topics included formaldehyde, molds, dust mites, radon and lead. Asbestos received one short paragraph. The article stated that asbestos was commonly used for insulating hot water pipes in homes built between 1920 and 1972, and also in joint finishing and patching compound, in the backing of vinyl, asphalt and rubber flooring, and in textured ceilings. It said inhaled fibers can lead to diseases including lung cancer and asbestosis, and that the CPSC banned asbestos in household products in 1977. It also said asbestos in older homes can become hazardous if the materials deteriorate and become airborne.

We wrote this plain-English summary from the full article with the help of AI, and a second AI model checked each sentence against the article. It is not the authors' wording; the abstract and the article are their own account.

What the study did and found

• Design: Journalistic news feature (Focus section), not an original research study; it relies on published studies by others, agency publications and interviews
• Who was studied: No study population. The feature covered hazards in U.S. homes in general, including combustion gases, volatile organic compounds such as formaldehyde, molds, dust mites, house dust, radon, lead and asbestos
• Exposure: Asbestos in homes: used for insulating hot water pipes in homes built between 1920 and 1972, and in joint finishing and patching compound, the backing of vinyl, asphalt and rubber flooring, and textured ceilings. No fiber types are named.
• Main results:
  • The article stated, as background and not as a study finding, that the EPA Science Advisory Board had consistently ranked indoor air pollution among the top five risks to public health
  • The article described combustion gases as the most dangerous home hazards
  • The article described carbon monoxide as by far the most hazardous of the combustion gases
  • The article stated that inhaled asbestos fibers can lodge in the lungs and lead to diseases including lung cancer and asbestosis, which it described as a chronic fibrotic lung disease
  • The article stated that use of asbestos in household products was banned by the CPSC in 1977
  • The article stated that older homes may still contain asbestos, which can become hazardous if the materials deteriorate and become airborne
• The authors' conclusion: The author closed by suggesting that, given the time people spend indoors, ensuring a healthy home environment may become a concern for everyone, not only homeowners

Related studies

• Emission of airborne fibers from mechanically impacted asbestos-cement sheets and concentration of fibrous aerosol in the home environment in Upper Silesia, Poland — J.S. Pastuszka (2009)
• A study of fibrous aerosols in the home environment in Sosnowiec, Poland — J.S. Pastuszka, A. Kabala-Dzik, et al. (1999)
• Evaluation of vacuum and wet-wipe methods for removal of World Trade Center dust from indoor environments — K.M. Tang, C.G. Nace, et al. (2004)
• Assessment of airborne exposures and health in flooded homes undergoing renovation — K.A. Hoppe, N. Metwali, et al. (2012)
• Evaluation of asbestos-containing products and released fibers in home appliances — S.H. Hwang, W.M. Park (2016)
• Composition of heavy metals and airborne fibers in the indoor environment of a building during renovation — M.T. Latif, N.H. Baharudin, et al. (2011)

Browse more research in Environmental Health Perspectives, or return to medical research.