Feeling Sick When Indoors?

Background

IEQ (Indoor Environment Quality) has been a rising concern in recent years from the health, hygiene, and productivity viewpoints because of people feeling sick when indoors. IEQ within a building environment may have adverse health implications on the occupants on one hand and financial loss to the building owners on the other. The implication could be as simple as some common allergenic symptoms but may be severe life threatening conditions such as acute asthma etc. These conditions may be triggered in the building occupants due to the toxigenic nature of the environment to which they are exposed. Depending upon the individual’s immune response, the exposure of contaminants/pollutants makes you feel sick when indoors by compromising the functionality of the body. The sickness, while occupying a building space, may progress due to the exposure of contaminants and pollutants existing in and around the surroundings. Mainly the exposure to the above substances happens due to inhalation, ingestion, and dermal contact. There may be a number of influential factors such as age, genetic inheritance, and other environmental conditions that may impact the condition.

Indoor Contaminants

Some of the common agents that may be reported within a building are but not limited to nuisance dust, pollen grains, mold spores, fibers, dust mites, insect/insect particulates, Volatile Organic Compounds (VOC), mycotoxins, endotoxins and other plant and animal borne materials etc. It has been observed that biologically originated entities proliferate in closed environments depending upon the availability of food material (organic compounds), temperature, relative humidity, and light, etc. However, intrusions of VOC and other chemical toxins greatly depend on their source from they are being emitted

Proper identification and quantification is necessary in order to effectively alleviate the situation related with the building induced conditions that impact occupant well-being.  A few basic approaches as mentioned below is highly encouraged in order to identify the potential agents responsible for such conditions and determining their abatement strategies.

Best Practices

In absence of a universally accepted practice to assess indoor environments, a few basic approaches are beneficial for enhancing environmental quality by preventing and managing indoor contaminants/allergens. It is encouraged to properly manage building ventilation, relative humidity and temperature under the threshold (30-60% and 68-79°F, respectively). It is also worth mentioning that smoking inside, off-gassing from household appliances/furniture and other stationery objects may adversely affect the environmental quality. Consider testing your indoor environment using do-it-yourself test kits for an initial screening and if it turns positive then building health evaluation for occupancy need to be undertaken on periodical basis. For maintaining a good environmental air quality, smart air purification devices can be used after proper remediation. All of this helps with occupant comfort and can keep them from feeling sick when indoors.

If you are feeling sick when indoors please contact us for more info: 1-800-422-7873 extension 301.