More than 17 million Americans have asthma, making it the leading cause of long-term illness in children. Asthma attacks are often triggered by allergens and irritants that are common in homes, schools, and child care settings. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Indoor Environments Division (IED), recommends that people with asthma take steps to reduce exposure to indoor asthma triggers such as secondhand smoke, dust mites, pets, molds, and cockroaches.
This presentation will update APHA members on EPA guidance for mitigation of indoor asthma triggers. The presentation will include discussion of potential indoor asthma triggers and remediation steps to reduce those triggers. The principal conclusions of the National Academy of Sciences report, Clearing the Air, Asthma and Indoor Air Exposures (2000) which was commissioned by EPA will also be discussed.
Examples of remediation/cleanup steps included in the NAS report and EPA guidance follow: Choose not to smoke in your home; Wash sheets and blankets once a week in hot water; Keep pets out of bedrooms and other sleeping areas; Clean up mold and get rid of excess water or moisture.
For more information contact: EPA Indoor Air Quality Clearinghouse 800-438-4318 or www.epa.gov/iaq.
Learning Objectives: 1) Participants will be able to identify options for decreasing indoor air asthma triggers and will have the opportunity to discuss same. 2) Participants will become familiar with the NAS report,"Clearing the Air, Asthma and Indoor Air Exposures" and highlights of the report recommendations.
Keywords: Asthma, Air Quality
Presenting author's disclosure statement:
Organization/institution whose products or services will be discussed: None
Disclosure not received
Relationship: Not Received.