Homes that Heal and Those that Don't

Description

Media reports focus increasingly on the declining health of children in industrialized countries. Asthma, autism, learning and behavior problems, and cancer are all on the rise. At the same time there is consistent news about poor indoor air quality, mold, and how buildings can make people sick.

Homes that Heal addresses both of these developments, revealing that our own homes can contribute to many of these health problems. A passionate examination of our built environment and the alarming impact today's chemically polluted world is having on the health of present and future generations, Homes that Heal is easy-to-read, solutions-oriented, and humorous, full of stories and advice that empower families to take back their health on a daily basis. Topics covered include:

• a Healthy Home Quiz that enables readers to evaluate the health of their own home and identify many of the common home health hazards
• factors impacting indoor air quality
• a room-by-room examination of typical problems and solutions
• toxic materials used in building a new home, or remodeling
• cleaning products and other consumer hazards found in the home
• an easy-to-understand introduction to the science of Bau-biologie (Building Biology), an internationally recognized approach to healthy construction.

Packed with useful information and resources, Homes That Heal is written to be easily understood by busy mothers and will appeal to anyone interested in the health of their family. Designed for the family coffee table, it is equally suitable for doctor's offices and home improvement stores alike.

Mother Earth News Wiser Living Series

Subjects

• Books
• Health and well-being
• Indoor air quality
• Living Space

Informations

• Published by: New Society Publishers
• Published: 01 October 2004
• Reads: 0
• EAN13: 9781550923193
• Language: English
• Document size: 2 MB

Exrait

A D VA N C E P F O RR A I S E Homes That Heal

The depth of knowledge and solid information in this book is truly impressive. Homes That Healis a must for homeowners and renters of all ages. You’ll refer to this book again and again: it has it all! — R OBYN G RIGGS L AWRENCE , EditorinChief,Natural Homemagazine

Athena Thompson has done something that should have been done long ago: she has taken the complicated domains of public health and the built environment and has made them clear and accessible to those who need it most — families.Homes that Heal, with its easytounderstand language, features, and solutionsoriented focus, bridges an essential, but often overlooked, gap. It should be required reading for all homeowners. — R OBERT K. M USIL , PhD, MPH, Executive Director and CEO, Physicians for Social Responsibility

Smart, compelling and timely, Athena Thompson’sHomes That Healis full of practical, and often eyeopening, information. It should be on every homeowner’s bookshelf. — B OB F EEMAN , Managing Editor,Smart HomeOwnermagazine

Athena Thompson’s cast of fictional characters vividly illustrate the true facts.... We must all become informed and proactive homeowners in order for our homes to nurture our families’ optimum health. This book is thorough, provocative, informative and, on top of all that, it is fun to read! — P AULA B AKER L APORTE , Architect, Author,Prescriptions for a Healthy House

A masterpiece of “knowledge translation” of complex information on a vital topic for all of us, with plenty of resources provided for further learning. A riveting read that makes a passionate plea for prudent purchasing and the precautionary principle in public health policy. — L YNN M. M ARSHALL MD, Fellow of the American Academy of Environmental Medicine, Fellow of the Royal Society of Medicine (Great Britain)

Homes that Healis an exciting and informative book. I thought that I’d just thumb through it to see if there was an easy step I can take to make my house healthier. I found myself reading every page! It’s simple and most suggestions are very doable even on a tight budget. — L OIS M ARIE G IBBS , Executive Director, Center For Health, Environment and Justice Community leader winning the evacuation of families from the Love Canal toxic dumpsite in Niagara Falls, NY.

Advanc e Prai s e c ont i nue d

If after cleaning your house, a question lingers: “it smells clean, but is it safe?” — then stop right here. This is the book for you!Homes That Healis filled to the rafters with sensible and simple ways to create a safe and healthy home for you and your family. — W ENDY G ORDON , Executive Director, The Green Guide Institute

Homes that Healis an extremely important resource covering all aspects of environmental health for the home. Athena Thompson is an expert in this field and she has presented the information in a way that is accessible and entertaining. — M EGAN K EMPLE , Public Education Coordinator, Northwest Coalition for Alternatives to Pesticides

Homes that Healis the ideal book. Through the use of simple stories to illustrate a variety of situations, Athena Thompson conveys the problems and provides solutions that everyone can apply. The awareness gained will result in actions that will benefit the entire family. This is knowledge that everyone can use to create healthy living and working spaces. — H ELMUT Z IEHE , Director, International Institute for Baubiologie and Ecology

This book offers timely, practical and entertaining reading on a most important subject, the health of our homes and those who live in them. It shows us that what we don’t know can hurt us and that there is always a natural and least toxic choice to each of our building and remodeling decisions. Choose wisely. — W ILL S PATES , President, Indoor Environmental Technologies, Inc.

The information contained in this book is a long leap forward in our efforts to change the way we create our individual spaces. In creating healthy environments that comfort our souls and heal our bodies we can begin to step more lightly on our planet.Homes That Heal gives stepbystep assistance, a must read before buying or remodeling. — C ONNIE M ENUEY M C C ULLAH , Coowner of Odin’s Hammer, Certified Green Remodeling Professionals

Athena Thompson follows in the steps of Florence Nightingale, who said that “the connection between health and the dwelling of the population is one of the most important that exists.” — R UTH A. E TZEL , MD, PhD, Children’s Environmental Health Network

Athena Thompson has applied her extensive knowledge as a health professional and Building Biologist to creating healthy spaces to live, learn and work in. It is the toxicity of our world that creates most illnesses that kill us or reduces our quality of life.Homes that Healis a must read! — S ATYA A MBROSE . L.Ac., N.D., Founder of the Oregon College of Oriental Medicine, Clinician, National College of Naturopathic Medicine.

Homes That Healprovides a new blueprint for living healthier through Building Biology. It’s well worth the read! — N ANCY C HUDA , President and cofounder, Children’s Health Environmental Coalition

N EW S OCIETY P UBLISHERS

Cataloguing in Publication Data: A catalog record for this publication is available from the National Library of Canada.

Copyright © 2004 by Athena Thompson. All rights reserved.

Cover design by Diane McIntosh. Cover image: Wane Fuday.

Printed in Canada. Second Printing, January 2005.

Paperback ISBN: 0865715114

This book is not intended to provide medical or legal advice. The services of a com petent professional should be obtained whenever medical, legal, or other specific advice is needed

Inquiries regarding requests to reprint all or part ofHomes That Healshould be addressed to New Society Publishers at the address below.

To order directly from the publishers, please add $4.50 shipping to the price of the first copy, and $1.00 for each additional copy (plus GST in Canada). Send check or money order to:

New Society Publishers P.O. Box 189, Gabriola Island, BC V0R 1X0, Canada 18005676772

New Society Publishers’ mission is to publish books that contribute in fundamental ways to building an ecologically sustainable and just society, and to do so with the least possible impact on the environment, in a manner that models this vision. We are committed to doing this not just through education, but through action. We are acting on our commitment to the world’s remaining ancient forests by phasing out our paper supply from ancient forests worldwide. This book is one step towards ending global deforestation and climate change. It is printed on acidfree paper that is100% old growth forestfree(100% postconsumer recycled), processed chlorine free, and printed with vegetable based, low VOC inks. For further information, or to browse our full list of books and purchase securely, visit our website at: www.newsociety.com

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www.newsociety.com

To Wane and Sean, my inspirations. and To all our children and future generations, may we be worthy of their trust.

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Table of Contents

Acknowledgments............................................................................................. ix

Foreword........................................................................................................... xi

Introduction....................................................................................................... 1

Part One: The Building of a House

Chapter 1:.........................................................................................5The Basics

Chapter 2:The Healthy Versus The Unhealthy Home ..................................... 13

Chapter 3:The Conventionally Built New Home ............................................ 19

Chapter 4:The Remodeled Home................................................................... 41

Chapter 5:The Healthy New Home................................................................ 55

Part Two: How To Live Healthfully In Your House

Chapter 6:..................................................... 75Environmental Health at Home Healthy Home Quiz .................................................................................. 83

Chapter 7:Bedrooms....................................................................................... 99

Chapter 8:Bathrooms ................................................................................... 131

Chapter 9:Kitchens ....................................................................................... 147

Chapter 10:......................................................................... 165Laundry Rooms

V I I

V I I I H O M E S T H A T H E A L

Chapter 11:Home Offices ............................................................................ 181

Chapter 12:Other Rooms ............................................................................. 191

Chapter 13:Garages ...................................................................................... 205

Chapter 14:Yards, Plants, and Pests .............................................................. 213

Chapter 15:Pets............................................................................................ 229

Chapter 16:Cleaning .................................................................................... 239

Chapter 17:Home Maintenance.................................................................... 255

Chapter 18:..................................................... 265Living Happily Ever After ...

Appendix A:271Glossary ....................................................................................

Appendix B:Acronyms and Abbreviations ..................................................... 277

Appendix C:Sources and Resources .............................................................. 279

Appendix D:The 25 Principles of Building Biology....................................... 287

Endnotes........................................................................................................ 289

Index

............................................................................................................ 301

About the Author...........................................................................................307

Acknowledgments

omes that Healwas shaped and formed by a cast of many characters, both on H the written page and in real time. First and foremost, I would like to thank my husband, Wane, and my son, Sean, for their love, patience, and support during the process of writing this book. It is a challenge to the best of families to have a wife and mother preoccupied for so many months. In addition to cooking many great meals, Wane was an invaluable proofreader of the text in all its incarnations, while Sean helped specifically in the creation of the children's characters and offered input on all the cartoons. Cris Hammond deserves great praise for his exceptional talent as an artist. His memorable cartoons will keep us all chuckling as we embrace the more serious task of making our homes safe places in which our families can thrive. Allan Lieberman M.D., has done a great service by writing the foreword to this book. With 44 years experience as a dedicated and caring physician his words offer both encouragement to everyday families as well as an authoratative perspective to family physicians not yet familiar with the effects our home environment can have on our health. Special thanks go to various colleagues and friends who reviewed chapters and provided valuable suggestions: Paula BakerLaporte, Helmut Ziehe, Lynn Marshall M.D., Ruth Etzel M.D. PhD, Will Spates, and Houston Tomasz. I would also like to thank the whole team at New Society Publishers for a truly collaborative effort and the forging of many friendships. Many other individuals and organizations, too numerous to mention here, have provided encouragement, information, and direct support over the years that have been vital to writing this book. I thank them all.

I X