How Sick Building Syndrome Can Affect Your Health

Our health is affected by a lot of things, and our home and work environments can have a direct impact on our general health. Your home should be a sanctuary from the world. It’s where you rest, eat, and enjoy some peace and quiet. Your work environment is where you spend most of your time. If your home or work site are damaging your health, you need to recognize it and fix it.

My family moved from Mobile, Alabama, on the Gulf of Mexico to Oak Ridge, Tennessee, when I was 5 years old. My father had been hired by the Federal Government to work in one of the 3 plants there. I saw mountains for the first time and had lots of new experiences. Unfortunately, most of us in the family also developed hay fever from all the new pollens and other particulates in the air.

We first rented from the government a duplex half. Oak Ridge had been built as a secret city during WWII. The employees during the war lived in barracks. Later other housing was added with tri-plexes and duplexes. By the 1950’s, small singe family homes were added. All of the housing was built by the Army as “temporary housing” using concrete blocks (CBS housing). It’s used a lot in Florida for hurricane resistance. In Tennessee, which is a colder climate, you have cold damp concrete inside walls. In the winter the walls perspire and are damp. Mold or mildew can grow. I believe this contributed to my development of a compromised immune system which I now have.

Building Associated Illnesses or Sick Building Syndrome

If your environment is literally making you sick, this is known as a building-associated illness, or sometimes sick building syndrome. Back decades ago, I worked in a state office in downtown Miami, Florida. My group worked in an office with no windows that opened. Every day that I spent the whole day doing paperwork in the office, I had a raging headache by afternoon. I couldn’t think and was exhausted. I remember reading about “sick buildings” and wondered if there was a problem with the air exchange. I switched my schedule around and visited clients and programs in the afternoon. I did the paperwork the next morning. I was very happy when they moved our office.

If you live in an apartment block, you could be dealing with irritants like tobacco smoke or pet dander that you react to. Other potential issues, especially in older buildings, might be asbestos or lead used to construct the building. Gases, like radon and carbon monoxide, can also cause symptoms and potentially even risk your life.

As a tenant, you have the right to live in a safe home, and your landlord should be maintaining the property. At work, you should discuss your problem with your supervisor. If this isn’t the case, it’s important to explore your legal options and, if possible, find somewhere else to live or work.

A Stressful Home

Stress has been linked to poor health for a long time. Stress can also come from anywhere, such as work or family issues. But sometimes even your home, which is where you should be able to destress and relax, can be a cause of more anxiety.

Different things can cause stress, like an excess of clutter and an unclean environment, as well as broken-down appliances and maintenance issues.

It can seem very overwhelming, which is why you get more stressed, but you don’t feel as though you’re able to deal with it. In extreme cases, pest infestations can result from a cluttered home, which adds to your stress and worsens your health. Pests have even been known to cause trauma.

There are ways to break through this and make your home less stressful. Hiring a deep cleaning service can be a great way to wipe the slate clean and start from scratch, especially if you are overwhelmed. Otherwise, you can tackle a stressful home yourself by working on a room-by-room basis and breaking down one seemingly massive job into a list of more manageable tasks.

Damp and Mold

A damp home can be an uncomfortable one. It often feels colder, and you might notice a strange smell in the air. In some cases, the overly humid air can also ruin your belongings. Over time, this can result in a buildup of mold.

Mold can be dangerous to your health, especially if you or your children have asthma or other conditions that can make their lungs more susceptible to illness. It can make these existing conditions worse and, in some cases, it can cause some serious symptoms, especially if you have a dangerous strain of mold in your home.

There are different ways to deal with this. It’s important to get rid of mold as soon as you notice it, ideally while wearing PPE like a mask and gloves. If it’s a recurring problem, you might want to check for structural problems. A damp proof course can get rid of consistent damp in your home, which will make it more pleasant to live in. If your home tests with high mold counts, I would get professional remediation.

In the meantime, you can use dehumidifiers to get rid of excess humidity in your home. This is especially helpful if you dry your clothes inside, because it dries them more quickly and reduces the moisture in the air.

Poor Air Quality

Speaking of moisture in the air, it’s always important to make sure your home has good air quality. You can test for contaminants in the air so you know you don’t have any toxins like radon or carbon monoxide. It’s also important to make sure that your air ducts are cleaned regularly, as these filter your air so it’s healthier. Other ways to boost the air quality in your home are to get potted plants and, depending on where you live, open the windows now and then to air it out. I live in Florida and use my central air almost daily year round. I use a more expensive air filter (HEPA filter) that helps keep the air clean. I also change it every two months instead of 3 months.

From my personal experiences, when I am looking for new housing, I want to spend time in the apartment or home before I made my decision. I’ve been known to sit on the flour for 10 or 15 minutes. My reaction to unseen allergens may not instantly cause a problem. I am, however, usually feel a difference in a short time. due to the severity of my sensitivity developed over the years. I remember looking at condominiums to purchase about 20 years ago. I found a small one that looked nice and was inexpensive. I made an offer with option to inspect. I paid for an inspection plus mold testing. I was there with my sister and real estate agent during the inspection. I sat on the floor during the inspection which lasted about 20 minutes. I started having an asthma attack and went outside. I told the agent that I thought there was mold in the condo. She looked at me doubtfully and probably thought I was a hypochondriac. The mold inspection results came back a day later. She was totally changed in character as she told me 8 types of mold above the healthy limit were present. She apologized and said she would have bought it and gotten sick. I got my down payment back and didn’t buy it obviously.

My condition is not the norm, but it shows what can happen if you are living or working in a sick building. I hope this article in helpful if you ever develop a consistent health problem due to your environment.

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