Are You Home Sick?

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However, less severe symptoms, particularly those caused by consumer products, can often be inexpensively reduced by removing the products from the home. Heavy metals, solvents, pesticides and many other toxins are simple enough to avoid, once you know where they come from.

If you have a problem with formaldehyde, fungi or dust mites, you should seriously consider getting rid of all carpeting. Either the carpet or pad may be a source for formaldehyde, and both form humid microclimates (despite controlled indoor air humidity) that are ideal for the growth of mold and dust mites. Those who are formaldehyde-sensitive should also avoid products made from medium-density fiberboard, panicle board or hardwood plywood—materials used in some furniture, most cabinets and the subfloors of about 10 million U.S. homes (lift a warm-air register to examine a subfloor). Likewise, mobile homes (even those without ureaform-aldehyde insulation) are probably off-limits for the formaldehyde-sensitive.

Lead problems with soldered pipes can be solved by replacement with plastic or silver-soldered-copper piping, but lead paint (the predominate source) presents particular difficulties, since it is very difficult and hazardous to remove. Don't attempt this yourself; hire a competent lead-abatement contractor to either remove all woodwork coated with lead-based paint (check kitchens, bathrooms and window frames indoors) or carefully encapsulate it.

Finally, it's probably a good idea for everyone, even those who aren't sensitive, to remove all unvented combustion appliances from their homes. See the November/December 1988 issue of MOTHER for an extensive article on combustion-appliance leakage problems.

Source isolation: In some cases, it may be possible to seal off an offending pollutant from the indoor environment. For example, problems with pesticides from the ground penetrating the floor of the house can be eased by sealing off the crawlspace from the house.

Also, according to Dr. Thad Godish, of Ball State University's Indoor Air Quality Research Laboratory, covering surfaces such as cabinets and paneling with two coats of nitrocellulose-based varnish will reduce formaldehyde emissions by about 70%. Unfortunately, most such products contain toluene and xylene, thereby introducing other potential problems. No other known coating is an effective sealant, and many (including popular Swedish floor coatings such as Glitsa and the product used on nearly all hardwood cabinets and much fine furniture) are potent formaldehyde emitters themselves.

Ventilation will reduce an indoor air-quality problem by diluting the source, but it's usually not more than a partial or temporary solution. An air-to-air heat exchanger helps, but it won't cure most problems. Opening windows works in summer, and, short of leaving, it may be the only way to catch your breath and recover your senses well enough to plan a real solution.

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