Indoor air in schools and lung function of Austrian school children

Abstract

The Children's Environment and Health Action Plan for Europe (CEHAPE) of WHO focuses (inter alia) on improving indoor environments where children spend most of their time. At present, only little is known about air pollution in schools and its effect on the lung function of school children. Our project was set up as an Austrian contribution to CEHAPE. In a cross-sectional approach, differences in indoor pollution in nine elementary all-day schools were assessed and 34 of these pollutants were analyzed for a relationship with respiratory health determined by spirometry using a linear regression model. Overall 596 children (aged 6-10 years) were eligible for the study. Spirometry was performed in 433 children. Socio-economic status, area of living (urban/rural), and smoking at home were included in the model as potential confounders with school-related average concentration of air pollutants as the variable of primary interest. A negative association with flow volumes (MEF(75)) was found for formaldehyde in air samples, benzylbutylphthalate and the sum of polybrominated diphenylethers in school dust. FVC and FEV(1) were negatively associated with ethylbenzene and xylenes in air samples and tris(1,3-dichlor-2-propyl)-phosphate on particulates. Although, in general, the quality of school indoor air was not worse than that reported for homes, effects on the respiratory health of children cannot be excluded. A multi-faceted strategy to improve the school environment is needed.

Semi-volatile organic compounds in the air and dust of 30 French schools: a pilot study

“…Medians found for DEP, DBP, DEHP, and DiNP in our study are within the range of other studies: DEP, measured at 2.89 μ g/g in this study, is at most twice as concentrated as in Denmark (2.20 μ g/g), Germany or California, USA (1.40 μ g/g for both); the range of concentrations for DBP, measured at 38.2 μ g/g in this study, go from 1.87 μ g/g (North Carolina, USA) to 52.0 μ g/g (South Korea); likewise, DEHP and DiNP, respectively, quantified at 1430 μ g/g and 1030 μ g/g in this study are within the range of other studies (from 172 μ g/g in California, USA, to 3350 μ g/g in Austria for DEHP and from 302 μ g/g in Germany to 946 μ g/g in South Korea for DiNP). However, DiBP and BBP were at least twice as concentrated in French schools: the median concentration for DiBP, greater than 52 μ g/g, is higher than in Denmark (23 μ g/g), Germany (20 μ /g) or California, USA (9.3 μ g/g); the French concentration for BBP (105 μ g/g) was also higher than in other studies, ranging from 3.72 (North Carolina, USA) to 46.8 μ /g (California, USA) (Clausen et al., ; Fromme et al., ; Gaspar et al., ; Hutter et al., ; Kim et al., ; Langer et al., ; Wallner et al., ; Wilson et al., ). The frequent presence of PVC flooring (in 70% of classrooms) could explain the higher concentration of BBP in school dust, as more than 70% of BBP produced is used as a plasticizer in polymer products, mainly PVC for flooring (ECHA, ).…”

“…Cao et al also emphasize that dust with particle size less than 100 lm, which we chose, should be paid more attention because it is more relevant to human exposure. Sieved fractions between 63 lm to 500 lm were reported in the literature relating to SVOCs in schools Clausen et al, 2003;Gaspar et al, 2014;Harrad et al, 2010;Mizouchi et al, 2015;Wallner et al, 2012;Wilson et al, 2003). Sometimes larger particles and sand deposits were removed, but the dust was not sieved (Fromme et al, 2013(Fromme et al, , 2014.…”

“…Numerous studies relating to household contamination by SVOCs (Ali et al, 2012;Blanchard et al, 2014;Kanazawa et al, 2010;Le Cann et al, 2011;Meeker and Stapleton, 2010;Mercier et al, 2011) have been published in recent years. Studies investigating SVOC contamination in air and/or dust at school are less numerous (Cequier et al, 2014;Harrad et al, 2010;Lim et al, 2014;Mizouchi et al, 2015;Sofuoglu et al, 2010;Toms et al, 2015;Wallner et al, 2012;Wu et al, 2010), but they indicate that SVOCs are also present in school environments. It is important to gain better knowledge of SVOC contamination in school buildings.…”

Breast-Feeding Protects Children from Adverse Effects of Environmental Tobacco Smoke

“…We have previously reported on 433 schoolchildren (aged 6-9 years) from nine schools in Austria. We have found associations between indoor air quality in the schools and lung function of the children [1], between organophosphate flame retardants in the dust of classrooms and cognitive performance of the children [2], and between household factors like passive smoking reported in a questionnaire by the parents and lung function [3]. We also observed better lung function in children who had been breast-fed.…”

Significance of the School Physical Environment – A Commentary

“…Annesi-Maesano et al 30 Higher levels of particles, acrolein, NO 2 associated with increased past year asthma, although the association with NO 2 was not quite statistically significant Kim et al 31 Increased plasticizers associated with asthma symptoms Marks et al 32 Unflued gas heaters associated with cough and wheeze, but not lung function Mi et al 20 Higher CO 2 and NO 2 associated with current asthma and asthma medication, nonsignificant association of formaldehyde with asthma outcomes Simoni et al 33 Higher concentrations of particles less than 10μm in diameter were not significantly associated with wheeze, dry cough at night, and rhinitis but were associated with reduced nasal patency Smedje et al 25 Current asthma associated with open shelves, lower temperature, higher relative humidity, higher formaldehyde, higher volatile organic compounds Wallner et al 34 Reduced lung function associated with higher formaldehyde, ethyl benzene, and xylenes in air and with benzylbutly phthalate, and polybrominated diphenylethers in dust 34 Zhang et al 35 Nonspecific health symptoms, often called sick building syndrome symptoms associated with higher concentrations of particles, sulfur dioxide, and ozone Zhao et al 36 Higher SO 2 associated with wheeze and nocturnal breathlessness, higher NO 2 and formaldehyde associated with nocturnal breathlessness, although results varied somewhat depending on analysis model or engage in classroom dialogue; it is also fatiguing for teachers to speak over a noisy background. Academic achievement and behavior are compromised.…”