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</o:shapelayout></xml><![endif]--></head><body lang=EN-CA link="#0563C1" vlink="#954F72"><div class=WordSection1><p class=MsoNormal>I thought some readers may be interested in the following article and the importance of adequate ventilation<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal style='margin-bottom:18.0pt;background:white'><span style='font-size:24.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:#111111;letter-spacing:-.75pt;mso-fareast-language:EN-CA'>Asthma risks 'may be boosted by energy efficient homes'<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='background:white'><span style='font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:#777777;mso-fareast-language:EN-CA'>Last updated: 15 December 2014 at 1am PST<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='line-height:12.5pt;background:white'><b><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:white;border:none windowtext 1.0pt;padding:0cm;mso-fareast-language:EN-CA'>46</span></b><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:white;border:none windowtext 1.0pt;padding:0cm;mso-fareast-language:EN-CA'><a href="http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/286978.php?tw"><span style='color:white'>Like</span></a><b>46</b></span><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:#111111;mso-fareast-language:EN-CA'><o:p></o:p></span></p><div class=MsoNormal align=center style='text-align:center'><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif;mso-fareast-language:EN-CA'><hr size=2 width=1128 style='width:563.85pt' noshade style='color:#111111' align=center></span></div><p class=MsoNormal style='text-indent:21.0pt;line-height:12.5pt;background:white'><span style='font-size:9.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:#111111;border:none windowtext 1.0pt;padding:0cm;mso-fareast-language:EN-CA'><a href="http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/categories/asthma-respiratory/" title="Read more Respiratory / Asthma articles"><span style='color:white'>Respiratory / Asthma</span></a><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='line-height:18.0pt;background:white'><span style='font-size:8.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:#111111;mso-fareast-language:EN-CA'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='line-height:18.0pt;background:white'><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:#111111;mso-fareast-language:EN-CA'>A new study from researchers at the University of Exeter Medical School in the UK suggests energy efficient homes may increase asthma risks.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal align=center style='margin-left:15.0pt;text-align:center;line-height:16.8pt;background:white'><span style='font-size:8.5pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:#111111;mso-fareast-language:EN-CA'><img border=0 width=1050 height=699 id="Picture_x0020_11" src="cid:image001.jpg@01D01929.8DD22F20" alt="house with a scarf around it"></span><span style='font-size:8.5pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:#111111;mso-fareast-language:EN-CA'><br><i><span style='border:none windowtext 1.0pt;padding:0cm'>"Adults living in energy efficient social housing may have an increased risk of asthma," say the researchers.</span></i><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='line-height:18.0pt;background:white'><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:#111111;mso-fareast-language:EN-CA'>This week, the British government pledged £30 million ($47 million) in funding for energy efficient improvements. However, the new study - published in the journal <i><span style='border:none windowtext 1.0pt;padding:0cm'>Environment International</span></i> - argues that behavioral changes are needed to avoid this drive toward energy efficient homes boosting <a href="http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/info/asthma/" title="What is Asthma?"><b><span style='color:#B000B5;border:none windowtext 1.0pt;padding:0cm'>asthma</span></b></a> risk.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:6.0pt;margin-right:0cm;margin-bottom:12.0pt;margin-left:0cm;line-height:18.0pt;background:white'><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:#111111;mso-fareast-language:EN-CA'>The UK, the researchers remind, has one of the highest occurrences of asthma in the world.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='line-height:18.0pt;background:white'><b><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:#111111;border:none windowtext 1.0pt;padding:0cm;mso-fareast-language:EN-CA'>The researchers worked with UK social housing provider Coastline Housing to assess data from the residents of 700 properties in Cornwall. They report that people living in energy efficient homes were at increased risk of asthma, which was doubled if mold was present in the home.</span></b><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:#111111;mso-fareast-language:EN-CA'><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:6.0pt;margin-right:0cm;margin-bottom:12.0pt;margin-left:0cm;line-height:18.0pt;background:white'><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:#111111;mso-fareast-language:EN-CA'>"Energy efficiency measures are vital to help keep costs low and reduce the environmental impact of heating our homes," says Mark England, head of Technical Services at Coastline Housing.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:6.0pt;margin-right:0cm;margin-bottom:12.0pt;margin-left:0cm;line-height:18.0pt;background:white'><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:#111111;mso-fareast-language:EN-CA'>He says that the new study has provided an "invaluable insight" into how occupant behavior in fuel efficient homes can affect health.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:6.0pt;margin-right:0cm;margin-bottom:12.0pt;margin-left:0cm;line-height:18.0pt;background:white'><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:#111111;mso-fareast-language:EN-CA'>"As a result," he says, "we're working to provide better information to customers on how to manage their indoor environment, including potential training of volunteer sustainability champions."<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:6.0pt;margin-right:0cm;margin-bottom:12.0pt;margin-left:0cm;line-height:18.0pt;background:white'><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:#111111;mso-fareast-language:EN-CA'>This is the first study, the researchers say, to combine asset management data with information on occupant behavior and health in an assessment of the factors likely to contribute to asthma.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:6.0pt;margin-right:0cm;margin-bottom:12.0pt;margin-left:0cm;line-height:18.0pt;background:white'><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:#111111;mso-fareast-language:EN-CA'>"We've found that adults living in energy efficient social housing may have an increased risk of asthma," says lead author Richard Sharpe. He continues:<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='background:white'><span style='font-size:10.5pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:#111111;mso-fareast-language:EN-CA'>"Modern efficiency measures are vital to help curb energy use, and typically prevent heat loss through improved insulation and crack sealing. Yet some people, particularly those living in fuel poverty, are unlikely to heat a building enough - or ventilate it sufficiently - to prevent the presence of damp and mold, factors that we know can contribute to asthma."<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:6.0pt;margin-right:0cm;margin-bottom:12.0pt;margin-left:0cm;line-height:18.0pt;background:white'><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:#111111;mso-fareast-language:EN-CA'>Poorly ventilated homes contribute to participants' exposure to biological, chemical and physical contaminants that can worsen asthma. Other contributing factors to asthma risk include house dust mites and bacteria, which can affect the health of inhabitants in homes with high humidity.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:6.0pt;margin-right:0cm;margin-bottom:12.0pt;margin-left:0cm;line-height:18.0pt;background:white'><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:#111111;mso-fareast-language:EN-CA'>Some occupant behaviors, such as drying washing indoors or relying on old heating systems, can increase the levels of indoor humidity in a property, which can be worsened by energy efficient moves to seal cracks and gaps.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='margin-bottom:7.5pt;line-height:18.0pt;background:white'><span style='font-size:14.5pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:#313131;letter-spacing:-.75pt;mso-fareast-language:EN-CA'>Higher asthma prevalence among poorly ventilated homes with gas stoves<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='line-height:18.0pt;background:white'><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:#111111;mso-fareast-language:EN-CA'>Looking at other factors in the home that can exacerbate asthma, a recent study from Oregon State University reported that in homes where a gas stove is used without ventilation, the prevalence of wheezing and asthma is <a href="http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/releases/283259.php"><b><span style='color:#B000B5;border:none windowtext 1.0pt;padding:0cm'>higher than in homes with ventilation</span></b></a>.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:6.0pt;margin-right:0cm;margin-bottom:12.0pt;margin-left:0cm;line-height:18.0pt;background:white'><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:#111111;mso-fareast-language:EN-CA'>The Oregon State study found that children who lived in homes where gas stoves were used with an exhaust fan were 32% less likely to have asthma than children who lived in homes where ventilation was not used.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='line-height:18.0pt;background:white'><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:#111111;mso-fareast-language:EN-CA'>Also, children in homes that had ventilation for their gas stoves were 38% less likely to have <a href="http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/8888.php" title="What is bronchitis? What causes bronchitis?"><b><span style='color:#B000B5;border:none windowtext 1.0pt;padding:0cm'>bronchitis</span></b></a> and 39% less likely to have wheezing. Lung function was also found to be significantly improved among girls from homes that had ventilation for their stoves.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:6.0pt;margin-right:0cm;margin-bottom:12.0pt;margin-left:0cm;line-height:18.0pt;background:white'><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:#111111;mso-fareast-language:EN-CA'>Many study participants also reported using their gas stove for heating, which is linked to poorer respiratory health for children. In homes where gas stoves were used in this way, children were 44% less likely to have asthma and 43% less likely to have bronchitis if ventilation was available.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='line-height:18.0pt;background:white'><b><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:#111111;border:none windowtext 1.0pt;padding:0cm;mso-fareast-language:EN-CA'>Written by</span></b><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:#111111;mso-fareast-language:EN-CA'> <a href="http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/authors/david-mcnamee" title="View all articles written by David McNamee"><b><span style='color:#0164C8;border:none windowtext 1.0pt;padding:0cm'>David McNamee</span></b></a><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div>
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