Household determinants of biocontaminant exposures in Canadian homes.

Exposure to biocontaminants, such as dust mites, animal dander, bacteria, and mold, is associated with a range of health effects. This study identified household characteristics associated with indoor biocontaminant loadings in four Canadian cities. Floor dust was collected in 290 Canadian homes in Edmonton, Halifax, Montreal, and Windsor.

Development of the WHO Environmental Noise Guidelines for the European Region: An Introduction.

Following the Parma Declaration on Environment and Health adopted at the Fifth Ministerial Conference (2010), the Ministers and representatives of Member States in the WHO European Region requested the World Health Organization (WHO) to develop updated guidelines on environmental noise, and called upon all stakeholders to reduce children's exposure to noise, including that from personal electronic devices. The WHO Environmental Noise Guidelines for the European Region will provide evidence-based policy guidance to Member States on protecting human health from noise originating from transportation (road traffic, railway and aircraft), wind turbine noise, and leisure noise in settings where people spend the majority of their time. Compared to previous WHO guidelines on noise, the most significant developments include: consideration of new evidence associating environmental noise exposure with health outcomes, such as annoyance, cardiovascular effects, obesity and metabolic effects (such as diabetes), cognitive impairment, sleep disturbance, hearing impairment and tinnitus, adverse birth outcomes, quality of life, mental health, and wellbeing; inclusion of new noise sources to reflect the current noise environment; and the use of a standardized framework (grading of recommendations, assessment, development, and evaluations: GRADE) to assess evidence and develop recommendations.

A review of the experimental evidence on the toxicokinetics of carbon monoxide: the potential role of pathophysiology among susceptible groups.

Background: Acute high level carbon monoxide (CO) exposure can cause immediate cardio-respiratory arrest in anyone, but the effects of lower level exposures in susceptible persons are less well known. The percentage of CO-bound hemoglobin in blood (carboxyhemoglobin; COHb) is a marker of exposure and potential health outcomes. Indoor air quality guidelines developed by the World Health Organization and Health Canada, among others, are set so that CO exposure does not lead to COHb levels above 2.

Survey of Ambient Air Pollution Health Risk Assessment Tools.

Designing air quality policies that improve public health can benefit from information about air pollution health risks and impacts, which include respiratory and cardiovascular diseases and premature death. Several computer-based tools help automate air pollution health impact assessments and are being used for a variety of contexts. Expanding information gathered for a May 2014 World Health Organization expert meeting, we survey 12 multinational air pollution health impact assessment tools, categorize them according to key technical and operational characteristics, and identify limitations and challenges.

Health impacts of anthropogenic biomass burning in the developed world.

Climate change policies have stimulated a shift towards renewable energy sources such as biomass. The economic crisis of 2008 has also increased the practice of household biomass burning as it is often cheaper than using oil, gas or electricity for heating. As a result, household biomass combustion is becoming an important source of air pollutants in the European Union.

Quantifying the health impacts of ambient air pollutants: recommendations of a WHO/Europe project.

Objective: Quantitative estimates of air pollution health impacts have become an increasingly critical input to policy decisions. The WHO project "Health risks of air pollution in Europe--HRAPIE" was implemented to provide the evidence-based concentration-response functions for quantifying air pollution health impacts to support the 2013 revision of the air quality policy for the European Union (EU).

Methods: A group of experts convened by WHO Regional Office for Europe reviewed the accumulated primary research evidence together with some commissioned reviews and recommended concentration-response functions for air pollutant-health outcome pairs for which there was sufficient evidence for a causal association.

Indoor and Outdoor Levels and Sources of Submicron Particles (PM1) at Homes in Edmonton, Canada.

Exposure to submicron particles (PM1) is of interest due to their possible chronic and acute health effects. Seven consecutive 24-h PM1 samples were collected during winter and summer 2010 in a total of 74 nonsmoking homes in Edmonton, Canada. Median winter concentrations of PM1 were 2.

Urinary and breast milk biomarkers to assess exposure to naphthalene in pregnant women: an investigation of personal and indoor air sources.

Background: Naphthalene exposures for most non-occupationally exposed individuals occur primarily indoors at home. Residential indoor sources include pest control products (specifically moth balls), incomplete combustion such as cigarette smoke, woodstoves and cooking, some consumer and building products, and emissions from gasoline sources found in attached garages. The study aim was to assess naphthalene exposure in pregnant women from Canada, using air measurements and biomarkers of exposure.

Particulate matter beyond mass: recent health evidence on the role of fractions, chemical constituents and sources of emission.

Particulate matter (PM) is regulated in various parts of the world based on specific size cut offs, often expressed as 10 or 2.5 µm mass median aerodynamic diameter. This pollutant is deemed one of the most dangerous to health and moreover, problems persist with high ambient concentrations.

Fine and ultrafine particle decay rates in multiple homes.

Human exposure to particles depends on particle loss mechanisms such as deposition and filtration. Fine and ultrafine particles (FP and UFP) were measured continuously over seven consecutive days during summer and winter inside 74 homes in Edmonton, Canada. Daily average air exchange rates were also measured.

Predictors of indoor air concentrations in smoking and non-smoking residences.

Indoor concentrations of air pollutants (benzene, toluene, formaldehyde, acetaldehyde, acrolein, nitrogen dioxide, particulate matter, elemental carbon and ozone) were measured in residences in Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada. Data were collected in 106 homes in winter and 111 homes in summer of 2007, with 71 homes participating in both seasons. In addition, data for relative humidity, temperature, air exchange rates, housing characteristics and occupants' activities during sampling were collected.

Housing characteristics and indoor concentrations of nitrogen dioxide and formaldehyde in Quebec City, Canada.

Concentrations of nitrogen dioxide and formaldehyde were determined in a study of 96 homes in Quebec City, Canada, between January and April 2005. In addition, relative humidity, temperature, and air change rates were measured in homes, and housing characteristics were documented through a questionnaire to occupants. Half of the homes had ventilation rates below 7.