Actions You Can Take
An important key to pest management is to free your home of places for
pests to hide and to keep them from food and water. Pesticides are toxic
for people as well as pests so, try to use pest management methods that
present the least risk. Some of these methods are:
-Do not leave out food or garbage.
-Store food in airtight containers.
-Clean all food crumbs or spilled liquids right away.
-Wash dishes as soon as you are done using them.
-Keep counters, sinks, tables and floors clean and clear of clutter.
-Fix plumbing leaks and other moisture problems.
-Take piles of boxes, newspapers, and other items where cockroaches
may hide out of your home.
-Make sure trash in your home is properly stored in containers with
lids that close securely, and remove trash daily.
-Try using poison baits, boric acid, or traps first before using pesticidal
sprays.
-If sprays are used:
-Limit the spray to the infested area.
-Do not spray where you prepare or store food, or where young children
play, crawl, or sleep.
-Carefully follow instructions on the label.
-Make sure there is plenty of fresh air when you spray, and keep the
person with asthma out of the room while spraying. After spraying,
the room should be thoroughly aired out.
Source: EPA
Combustion Pollutants
What are Combustion Pollutants?
Combustion pollutants are gases or particles that come from burning
materials. The combustion pollutants discussed in this website come
from burning fuels in appliances. The common fuels burned in these appliances
are natural or LP gas, fuel oil, kerosene, wood, or coal. The types
and amounts of pollutants produced depend upon the type of appliance,
how well the appliance is installed, maintained, and vented, and the
kind of fuel it uses. Some of the common pollutants produced from burning
these fuels are carbon monoxide, nitrogen dioxide, particles, and sulfur
dioxide. Particles can have hazardous chemicals attached to them. Other
pollutants that can be produced by some appliances are unburned hydrocarbons
and aldehydes. Combustion always produces water vapor. Water vapor is
not usually considered a pollutant, but it can act as one. It can result
in high humidity and wet surfaces. These conditions encourage the growth
of biological pollutants such as house dust mites, molds, and bacteria.
Where Do Combustion Pollutants Come From?
Combustion pollutants found indoors include: outdoor air, tobacco smoke,
exhaust from car and lawn mower internal combustion engines, and some
hobby activities such as welding, woodburning, and soldering. Combustion
pollutants can also come from vented or unvented combustion appliances.
These appliances include space heaters, gas ranges and ovens, furnaces,
gas water heaters, gas clothes dryers, wood or coal-burning stoves,
and fireplaces. As a group these are called "combustion appliances."
Nitrogen Dioxide:
Breathing high levels of nitrogen dioxide causes irritation of the respiratory
tract and causes shortness of breath. Compared to healthy people, children,
and individuals with respiratory illnesses such as asthma, may be more
susceptible to the effects of nitrogen dioxide. Some studies have shown
that children may have more colds and flu when exposed to low levels
of nitrogen dioxide. When people with asthma inhale low levels of nitrogen
dioxide while exercising, their lung airways can narrow and react more
to inhaled materials.
Sulfur Dioxide:
Sulfur dioxide at low levels of exposure can cause eye, nose, and respiratory
tract irritation. At high exposure levels, it causes the lung airways
to narrow. This causes wheezing, chest tightness, or breathing problems.
People with asthma are particularly susceptible to the effects of sulfur
dioxide. They may have symptoms at levels that are much lower than the
rest of the population.
How Can I Reduce My Exposure to Combustion Pollutants?
Proper selection, installation, inspection and maintenance of your
appliances are extremely important in reducing your exposure to these
pollutants. Providing good ventilation in your home and correctly using
your appliance can also reduce your exposure to these pollutants. Additionally,
there are several different residential carbon monoxide detectors for
sale. The CPSC is encouraging the development of detectors that will
provide maximum protection. These detectors would warn consumers of
harmful carbon monoxide levels in the home. They may soon be widely
available to reduce deaths from carbon monoxide poisoning.
Appliance Selection
-Choose vented appliances whenever possible.
-Only buy combustion appliances that have been tested and certified
to meet current safety standards. Examples of certifying organizations
are Underwriters Laboratories (UL) and the American Gas Association
(AGA) Laboratories. Look for a label that clearly shows the certification.
-All currently manufactured vented gas heaters are required by industry
safety standards to have a safety shut-off device. This device helps
protect you from carbon monoxide poisoning by shutting off an improperly
vented heater.
-Check your local and state building codes and fire ordinances to
see if you can use an unvented space heater, if you consider purchasing
one. They are not allowed to be used in some communities, dwellings,
or certain rooms in the house.
-If you must replace an unvented gas space heater with another, make
it a new one. Heaters made after 1982 have a pilot light safety system
called an oxygen depletion sensor (ODS). This system shuts off the
heater when there is not enough fresh air, before the heater begins
producing large amounts of carbon monoxide. Look for the label that
tells you that the appliance has this safety system. Older heaters
will not have this protection system.
-Consider buying gas appliances that have electronic ignitions rather
than pilot lights. These appliances are usually more energy efficient
and eliminate the continuous low-level pollutants from pilot lights.
-Buy appliances that are the correct size for the area you want to
heat. Using the wrong size heater may produce more pollutants in your
home and is not an efficient use of energy.
-Talk to your dealer to determine the type and size of appliance you
will need. You may wish to write to the appliance manufacturer or
association for more information on the appliance. Some addresses
are in the back of this booklet.
-All new woodstoves are EPA-certified to limit the amounts of pollutants
released into the outdoor air. For more information on selecting,
installing, operating, and maintaining woodburning stoves, write to
the EPA Wood Heater Program. Their address is at the bottom of this
booklet. Before buying a woodstove check your local laws about the
installation and use of woodstoves.
Second Hand Smoke
What Is Secondhand Smoke?
Secondhand smoke is also known as Environmental Tobacco Smoke. Secondhand
smoke includes both exhaled mainstream smoke from smokers and sidestream
smoke from the end of a cigarette, cigar, or pipe. Secondhand smoke
contains more than 4,000 substances, including over 40 that are linked
to cancer. Many of the compounds in tobacco smoke are released at higher
rates in sidestream smoke than in mainstream smoke.
How Does Secondhand Smoke Relate To Asthma?
Secondhand smoke may trigger asthma episodes and make asthma symptoms
more severe in children who already have asthma. Moreover, secondhand
smoke is a risk factor for new cases of asthma in children who have
not previously exhibited asthma symptoms. The means by which secondhand
smoke triggers an asthma episode is believed to be through its irritancy
effects. That is, smoke irritates the chronically inflamed bronchial
passages of asthmatics. This is a different pathway from most of the
other environmental triggers of asthma, like dust mites and pet dander,
which trigger asthma episodes through allergenic effects. Exposure to
secondhand smoke is also known to cause a variety of other negative
health consequences, including lung cancer, ear infections in children,
and respiratory illnesses. Many of the health effects of secondhand
smoke (including asthma) are most clearly manifested in children. This
is because children are particularly vulnerable to secondhand smoke.
This is likely due to several factors, including the fact that children
are still developing physically, have higher breathing rates than adults,
and have little control over their indoor environments. Children receiving
high doses of secondhand smoke, such as those with smoking mothers,
run the greatest relative risk of experiencing damaging health effects.
Dust Mites
What Are Dust Mites?
Dust mites are tiny animals you cannot see. Every home has dust mites.
They feed on skin flakes and are found in mattresses, pillows, carpets,
upholstered furniture, bedcovers, clothes, stuffed toys, and fabric
or other fabric-covered items. Body parts and feces of dust mites can
trigger asthma in individuals with an allergic reaction to dust mites.
Exposure to dust mite allergen can cause asthma in susceptible children.
Actions You Can Take
-Wash bedding (such as sheets, bedcovers, and blankets) once a week
in hot water. Leave bed covers folded down to -Let sheets dry out
during day after sleeping in bed.
-Choose washable stuffed toys, wash them often in hot water, and dry
thoroughly. Keep stuffed toys off beds.
-Cover mattresses and pillows in dust-proof (allergen-impermeable)
zippered covers.
-Maintain low indoor humidity ideally between 30-50% relative humidity.
Humidity levels can be measured by hygrometers which are available
at local hardware stores.
Molds
Molds can be found almost anywhere; they can grow on virtually any substance
when moisture is present. Outdoors, many molds live in the soil and
play a key role in the breakdown of leaves, wood, and other plant debris.
Without molds we would all be struggling with large amounts of dead
plant matter. Molds break down plant materials by digesting them, using
the plant material for food. Molds produce tiny spores in order to reproduce,
just as plants produce seeds. Mold spores waft through the indoor and
outdoor air continually. When mold spores land on a damp spot indoors,
they may begin growing and digesting whatever they are growing on in
order to survive. There are molds that can grow on wood, paper, carpet,
foods, even dynamite. When excessive moisture or water accumulates indoors,
mold growth will often occur, particularly if the moisture problem remains
undiscovered or unaddressed. There is no practical way to eliminate
all mold and mold spores in the indoor environment; the way to control
indoor mold growth is to control moisture. Molds can trigger asthma
episodes in individuals with an allergic reaction to mold.
Actions You Can Take
If mold is a problem in your home, you must clean up the mold and eliminate
sources of moisture.
-Wash mold off hard surfaces and dry completely. Absorbent materials,
such as ceiling tiles and carpet, may have to be replaced if they
are contaminated with mold.
-Fix leaky plumbing or other sources of water.
-Keep drip pans in your air conditioner, refrigerator, and dehumidifier
clean and dry.
-Use exhaust fans or open windows in kitchens and bathrooms when showering,
cooking, or using the dishwasher.
-Vent clothes dryers to the outside.
-Maintain low indoor humidity, ideally between 30-50% relative humidity.
Humidity levels can be measured by hygrometers which are available
at local hardware stores.
