Most obvious is smoke, such as from
cigarettes to fireplaces. Cigarette smoke contains
more than 4,000 chemicals, including toxins like
ammonia, arsenic, benzene, carbon monoxide and
formaldehyde. It's linked to more than 53,000 deaths
in the United States annually, says Stanton Glantz,
director of the Center for Tobacco Control Research
and Education at University of California at San
Francisco.
Most at risk: children, the elderly, pregnant women
and people with heart or breathing problems. Air
filters can help, especially certified high-efficiency
air particulate devices, which remove 99.97 percent of
airborne particles with diameters of 0.3 microns or
more. (A micron is one-millionth of a meter.) But
tobacco smoke particles can be much smaller.
The best remedy: Don't smoke indoors. Better yet:
Don't smoke at all. A 2004 Italian study found that
three cigarettes produced more particulate pollution
than a diesel automobile idling for 30 minutes.
Wood-burning stoves and fireplaces are polluters,
too. One air quality management district in Southern
California recently banned their use on high-pollution
days. Some of that pollution - particulates, carbon
monoxide - can waft into the house. Make sure chimneys
and vents are clean, clear and don't leak. Or switch
to gas.
Radon is an invisible, odorless gas that seeps into
homes from decaying radioactive material in soil and
water. It's natural and unavoidable. Our bodies even
produce it. There's no consensus what a "safe" dose of
radon is, but clearly there's a limit. Radon is
carcinogenic, the second leading cause of lung cancer
in the United States, linked to roughly 15,000 deaths
annually, or 12 percent of all lung cancer deaths. The
key is minimizing exposure.
Start by placing a few radon detectors around the
house, especially in basements. Measure long-term
levels. If they're high, improve your house's
ventilation and look for cracks in floors and walls or
gaps in construction joints or where pipes enter the
house. These are places where radon gas is most likely
to seep in. Seal them.
Radon can also be found in groundwater. If you rely
on wells, have the water tested. If radon poses a
serious problem, find another water source. At the
very least, reduce your exposure. Drink bottled water.
Take shorter, cooler baths and showers. The hotter the
water, the more radon released.
CHEMISTRY 101
Your home may not qualify as a Superfund site, but
it can be something of a mini-hazardous waste dump.
The EPA estimates the average American household
contains 62 different toxic chemicals and up to 100
pounds of dangerous waste stashed away in garages,
basements and storage closets.
Some of it is pretty obvious: paints, solvents,
pesticides, weed killers, pool chemicals, and
automotive fluids such as oil and antifreeze. Other
toxic chemicals pose less clear threats: arts and
craft materials like certain glues, and ordinary
household cleaners.
According to the American Association of Poison
Control Centers, 92 percent of poison exposures happen
in the home, mostly involving cleaners and children.
Substances are considered to be household hazardous
waste if they are flammable, toxic, corrosive,
irritating, explosive, reactive or radioactive. Before
buying or using such products, think "precautionary
principle": Does the substance pose a threat, real or
possible? If it does, don't use it.
Read labels. Products with lots of warnings and
cautions should be avoided. Opt for safer
alternatives. If use of a hazardous substance is
absolutely necessary, do it smartly and store it
properly. According to federal surveys, less than half
of American households store dangerous materials out
of reach of children.
As for getting rid of hazardous waste, do that
responsibly. Most products tell you what constitutes
proper disposal. Or call your garbage hauler for
advice or directions.
Hazardous waste also includes the stuff you put
inside you. Pharmaceuticals discarded down the drain
or toilet wind up in the water supply, oceans and
environment. "You can find levels of aspirin, caffeine
and clofibric acid, the active compound in
fat-lowering drugs, in almost any water source," said
Christian Daughton, chief of environmental chemistry
in the Environmental Protection Agency's National
Exposure Research Laboratory in Las Vegas.
The effects upon wildlife can be disastrous.
Hormone-based drugs, for example, have been linked to
feminizing effects upon fish. As for humans, the
picture is murkier. Most of these compounds are not
filtered out by municipal water treatment plants.
Currently, measured levels are minute, but thousands
of compounds have been detected. No one wants to wash
down their prescription with a dilute cocktail of
other people's drugs.
THIS MOLD HOUSE
In recent years, mold has garnered notoriety as a
household health threat. It has been the basis of
widespread litigation and numerous stories of people
getting sick from their homes. Documented cases of
mold causing extreme health problems are actually
relatively rare. Mold isn't carcinogenic like radon or
asbestos. But in abundance, it can make people sick,
especially if they have immune deficiencies or suffer
from allergies.
Usually a mold problem isn't readily apparent. The
microbes prefer dark, moist places, like the space
between walls and wallpaper. To find out if you have a
mold problem, conduct testing. Homeowner tests are
available, but they tend to be superficial and hard to
do. Hire a trained professional. Watch out for scam
artists. Make sure there's a written report that
includes recommended remedies.
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