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Asthmatic mom writes:
"I
have had Asthma now for five years. It is Chronic
in the fall, and I've had three severe attacks
so far.
"I
can't even walk into a house that has been vacuumed
with a conventional vacuum within a day before
I get there.
"I
can say with strict conviction, that if we didn't
have a built-in vacuum, our home would not be
livable for me. And I know most everyone who has
a built-in vacuum feels the same way."
Diana
Spink
California, USA
M.
Eric Gershwin, M.D., editor of Allergy & Asthma
Magazine, an online publication of the University
of California at Davis, speaks of allergies and
dust mites. (http://www.health-line.com/articles/ac920005.htm).
Asthma,
Air Quality, and Environmental Justice: EPA's
Role in Asthma Education and Prevention (July 1995, EPA Document #402-F-95-001): "Asthma
is the leading chronic illness of children in
the United States and the leading cause of school
absenteeism due to chronic illness. Asthma deaths
and the number of Americans diagnosed with asthma
continue to increase each year...Asthma can be
aggravated by exposure to pollutant "triggers"
such as certain components of vehicle exhaust
and industrial emissions; tobacco smoke; pollen;
and allergens from animals and insects...Keep
the house clean to reduce allergy-causing agents
like microscopic dust mites, animal dander, and
pollen...Consider using a high efficiency vacuum
filter or a vacuum system that's vented to the
outside."
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Allergens in the home are
real, even 'creepy'.
U.S. News & World Report:
Oct. 7, 1991. "A major
cause of allergic reactions, dust mites are microscopic
members of the spider family that live in rugs,
bedding, upholstered furniture and stuffed toys
and feed on the tiny flecks of skin we constantly
shed. Millions can be found in the average household.
It's not the creatures themselves that cause allergic
reactions, but the waste they release that then
travel through the air." See side bar on
the right.
American Lung Association:
"Poor indoor air quality
can cause or contribute to the development of
chronic respiratory diseases such as asthma, and
hypersensitivity and pneumonitis."
United States Environmental
Protection Agency (EPA) http://www.epa.gov/iaq/:
Most
people are aware that outdoor air pollution can
damage their health but may not know that indoor
air pollution can also have significant effects.
EPA studies of human exposure to air pollutants
indicate that indoor air levels of many pollutants
may be 2-5 times, and occasion more than 100 times,
higher than outdoor levels. These levels of indoor
air pollutants are of particular concern because
it is estimated that most people spend as much
as 90% of their time indoors. Over the past several
decades, our exposure to indoor air pollutants
is believed to have increased due to a variety
of factors, including the construction of more
tightly sealed buildings, reduced ventilation
rates to save energy, the use of synthetic building
materials and furnishings, and the use of chemically
formulated personal care products, pesticides,
and household cleaners.
Central
vacuums make a clean air difference.
Annals of Allergy:
March 1985, Vol. 54, Num.
3, Pg. 209. "Determination of the number
of particles less than .5, 1, 2, 5, and 10mM in
the air before, during, and after cleaning of
carpeting disclosed larger numbers of airborne
particles during cleaning with portable vacuum
cleaners than with central vacuum cleaners...Nearly
all of these particles are small enough usually
to be inhaled and deposited in the lower respiratory
tract. Accordingly, they constitute a hazard for
patients with asthma as well as those with allergic
rhinitis."
One
government's push for central vacuums.
The Swedish government studied a proposal of a
nation wide central vacuum subsidization program
to offset the rising health care cost of allergy
related afflictions among children. The study
showed how central vacuums removed house dust
out of the home environment, which would reduce
the vast numbers of asthmatic and allergic cases.
(There is also a current study taking place in
the Netherlands.)
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How will you respond to...
DUST MITES
The house dust mite and its excrement are one
of the most widespread causes of allergies.
Homes
are a comfortable place to live; they have an
enjoyable temperature and a rather high relative
humidity. But these conditions are also excellent
prerequisites for the propagation of house dust
mites. House dust mites are found in every household.
It
is not the mites themselves that contain allergens
but their excrement, which are triggers for asthma,
eczema and allergic nasal mucous membrane inflammations.
Allergen-containing mite excrement on fibers (as
pictured above) gradually falls apart into very
tiny particles. The allergenic dust then flies
up into the surrounding air and is inevitably
inhaled as we breath. This also happens during
regular vacuuming. And exposure to high concentrations
of house dust allergens at a very early age greatly
increases the risk of suffering from diseases
such as asthma later on.
The
house dust mite has a life span of about four
months. During this time it produces about 200
times its weight in excrement and lays up to 300
eggs. This makes it clear why the concentration
of allergens in a room increases exponentially
within a very short time.
Even
with regular and thorough housecleaning, dust
particles and human skin scales continuously accumulate.
Mites derive their principal nourishment from
these human and animal skin scales, but also feed
on fungal mold. The average size of house dust
mites is 0.3mm. About 3 mites could fit inside
the dot at the end of this sentence.
BUT, all dust mites and their allergens vacuumed
up with a M.D. central vacuum are removed from
the living areas for good!
Photo
and text modified from www.espera.net/mites/.
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