Environmental Engineers & Scientists > Geologist > Remedial Contractors
STRONG LINK BETWEEN MOLD AND ASTHMA IN CHILDREN
Exposure to mold before the age of seven substantially raises a child’s risk of developing asthma, according to a new study.
The researchers found that children living in homes with high levels of mold had more than twice the risk of developing asthma than did children in mold-free homes. The study appeared in the Annals of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology.
“Early life exposure to mold seems to play a critical role in childhood asthma development,” said Tina Reponen, lead study investigator and University of Cincinnati professor of environmental health. “Genetic factors are also important to consider in asthma risk, since infants whose parents have an allergy or asthma are at the greatest risk of developing asthma.
Another recent study on asthma triggers and prevention found that indoor air cleaners and significantly reduce household air pollution and lower the rates of daytime asthma symptoms to those achieved with some anti-inflammatory asthma drugs. That study appeared in the Archives of Pediatric and Adolescent Medicine.
Researchers cautioned, however, that although the air cleaners improved the overall air quality in homes, they did not deduce air nicotine levels and did not counter all detrimental effects of second-hand smoke.
Asthma affects approximately 9 percent of school-age children, but the rates of asthma are often higher in children from poor, urban families.
The direct medical costs of asthma in the United States are approximately $15 billion per year, with several thousand deaths and millions of lost work and school days, according the researchers. Asthma may have its origin in early life but once developed may persist for a lifetime.
The investigation was a part of the prospective Cincinnati Childhood Allergy and Air Pollution Study (CCAAPS), which is investigating the role of aeroallergens and traffic exhaust in the development of respiratory disorders.
In the past, one of the problems with mold exposure estimates was the lack of quantitative standardized methods for describing the residential mold burden. A metric called the Environmental Relative Moldiness Index has been developed and validated in a national survey of homes.
The major focus of the study was exposure to molds during infancy and later childhood and the development of asthma. The Institutes of Medicine and World Health Organization (WHO) reviews of the scientific literature regarding dampness and/or mold and asthma have concluded that there was an association between building dampness and/or mold and
respiratory health effects, including asthma. But the precise nature of the link had never been quantified.
At the age of seven years, children were evaluated for allergic sensitization and asthma based on symptom history, spirometry, exhaled nitric oxide, and airway reversibility. A questionnaire was administered to the parent regarding the child’s asthma symptoms and other potential cofactors.
The study investigated the association between asthma and allergic sensitization to molds (Aspergillus, Alternaria, Cladosporium, and Penicillium), cat, dog, and house dust mites. In addition, a questionnaire on the infants’ exposure, heat, and demographics was administered to the caregiver. At seven years of age, the children also completed spirometry and tests for exhaled nitric oxide concentration and airway reversibility and/or airway hyperreactivity.
At the age of seven years, 31 of 176 children (18%) were found to be asthmatic. Children living in a high-ERMI value home at one year of age had more than twice the risk of developing asthma than those in low-ERMI value homes. Of the other variables, only parental asthma and allergic sensitization to house dust mites ere risk factors for asthma development. In contrast, air-conditioning at home reduced the risk of asthma development.
“The four mold types included in the test panel represent only a small fraction of possible molds in homes,” the researcher noted.
“Additional research is needed to determine which mold species may be the most relevant for asthma pathogenesis. Our study also supports the well-established association between allergic sensitization to house dust mites and asthma. Sensitization to house dust mites in our study was significantly associated with asthma but was not a confounder of the ERMI-asthma relationship. The WHO report entitled Indoor Air Guidelines: Dampness and Mold concluded that there is an association between dampness and/or mold and asthma.
(Indoor Environment Communications,
September 2011)
ASPHALT FUMES –
NO SIGNIFICANT RISK
Over a number of years, principally due to odor concerns, there has been a perception that asphalt fumes present a health problem. In-depth testing has now been made available based on work by the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) based in Leon, France. Scientific studies included:
- Human mortality – IARC’s eight-country study (Nested Case Control, 2009) showed no link between exposure to asphalt paving fumes and cancer in paving workers.
- Animal inhalation – Fraunhofer Institute (Germany, 2005-2006) study found no link between asphalt paving fumes and cancer.
- Animal skin painting – A study in the U.S. sponsored by the Asphalt Institute (2009-2010) found no link between asphalt paving fumes and cancer.
The result of the research was that the two key animal studies on paving asphalt did not show any evidence of cancer risk, and a major IARC cancer study of people working in the paving industry in Europe did not show any increased risk for cancer.
It should be noted that there are different types of asphalt products and asphalt cement, which is within the asphalt mix and holds the asphalt together, comes from a petroleum refinery. There are different petroleum fractions which come from refineries, including everything from lighter oils and gasoline, to such products as home heating oil or bunker oil. It so happens that asphalt, contains less carcinogenic compounds, such as benzene, as compared to a lighter oils and gasoline. Gasoline contains significant concentrations of benzene which is carcinogenic.
The asphalt industry has determined that there is only limited exposure to asphalt fumes for its workers actually standing on and behind the paving equipment. Newer paving machines, have ventilation systems to disperse the fumes which come off of the paving machine, at the discharge point.
The bottom line is that there should be no concern regarding asphalt fume health impacts by the general public although asphalt produces a temporary odor, when pavements are placed. Note also that asphalt used in pavement placement is different from “coal tar”, which is a different material which does not come from petroleum refineries.
The comprehensive health assessment work completed is good news for the industry and the general public as there is no need to be concerned about public health when paving operations take place.
CONSIDERATION OF NATURAL ATTENUATION IN REMEDIATING CONTAMINATED SITES (2011)
The Federal Environmental Agency of Germany’s UBA has translated into English a position paper of the Federal/State Working Group on Soil Protection about the consideration of natural attenuation in remediating contaminated sites. The position paper details the knowledge and approaches existing in Germany and provides practical recommendation. View or download at (http://www.umweltbundesamt.de/uba-into-medien-e/4131.html.)