Indoor Air Quality
The quality of the air in your home and workplace directly affects your health. The average adult breathes approximately
13,000 liters of air each day, along with whatever pollutants happen to be mixed in. Your immune system works to protect
you from toxins, but it can only handle so much. If these toxins overload your body,
your immune system cannot keep up and it breaks down.
The EPA has estimated that indoor air
pollution kills 11,400 people each year.
Toxins and VOCs (Volatile Organic Compounds) enter the home or workplace from the paint, flooring, stains, varnishes, plywood,
carpeting, insulation and other building products used in their construction. These substances are released
into the air through a process called offgassing. Offgassing can continue for
years and therefore affect your health long after construction has been completed. Additionally, today's more
airtight construction methods work to seal in these substances, rather than allowing fresh air to dilute them.
According to the New England Journal of Medicine, 40% of children will develop respiratory disease, in part, due to
the chemicals in their homes. The United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) reports that the air in new homes
can be ten times more polluted than outdoor air.
The EPA's Total Exposure Assessment Methodology (TEAM) studies found levels of about a dozen common pollutants to be 2 to
5 times higher inside homes, regardless of whether they were located in rural or highly industrial areas.
Additional TEAM studies indicate that while people are using products containing VOCs, they can expose themselves and others
to very high pollutant levels; and elevated concentrations of these compounds can persist in the air long after the activity
is completed. During and for several hours immediately after certain activities, such as paint stripping, levels of
common organic pollutants may be 1,000 times normal outdoor levels.
Once in your system, VOCs are stored in body fat and can lead to serious health problems. Many commonly used
compounds are known carcinogens, but their use is not presently regulated. Indoor air quality has become a significant
health issue and should be considered by employers, homeowners and contractors in every project.
