Health Department News
Public Health promotes clean indoor air
Local agency celebrates National Public Health Week, April 3-9
Take a deep breath, and then take this quiz for National Public Health Week: What will you do 100 times while reading this article, 14,000 times today, and 400 million times in your lifetime?
The answer, of course, is breathe.
Fortunately we don’t have to think to breathe, but spending a few minutes thinking about the quality of the air you breathe has important health implications. It stands to reason that breathing contaminated air can lead to chronic disease. Radon, mold, carbon monoxide, tobacco smoke and other pollutants can make indoor air unhealthy and even deadly.
In celebration of National Public Health Week, April 3-9, the five-county Western U.P. District Health Department urges residents to test their homes for radon gas, and to refrain from smoking in their homes, cars and around their children, as ways to safeguard the health of their loved ones. Such measures can reduce rates of illness and chronic disease among family members and even household pets.
“Public Health strives to reduce or prevent chronic disease in large populations through education and access to services,” said WUPDHD Medical Director Gail Shebuski, M.D. “Improved sanitation and water quality, the prevention of disease through immunization, and measures such as reduced tobacco use, blood pressure control and seat belt use have saved many millions of lives.”
Clean Indoor Air
Did you know that radon is the second leading cause of lung cancer in the United States, topped only by cigarette smoking? Radon is a naturally occurring gas that enters homes through openings in the foundation. Exposure to elevated levels of this tasteless, odorless, colorless
radioactive gas is easily preventable. A simple and inexpensive test can detect whether radon is a problem in your home, and straightforward techniques can be used to reduce elevated radon levels.
“If you haven’t tested your home for radon, make a point to do so this year,” urged WUPDHD Environmental Health Director Lynne Tarbutton. “And while you’re at it, encourage your co-workers, friends, neighbors and relatives to do the same.” Free test kits are available at all Health Department offices.
Tarbutton said nearly one-in-eight Michigan homes has elevated radon levels. But another common product found in homes, cars and restaurants poses an even more widespread health risk. According to the Environmental Protection Agency, this product contains a complex mixture of more than 4,000 chemicals, more than 50 of which are known or probable human cancer-causing agents. Breathing the fumes from this product has been directly linked to Sudden Infant Death Syndrome, asthma, heart disease and lung cancer.
Deadly Smoke
The product is a cigarette and its fumes are more commonly referred to as secondhand smoke. “The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention tell us there is no ‘safe’ level of exposure to secondhand smoke,” said health educator Gail Ploe. “As little as 30 minutes is harmful.”
Ploe, a tobacco reduction specialist at the Health Department, said infants, the elderly, and people with respiratory or heart problems are especially vulnerable to its effects but no one is immune to the risks. According to the Michigan Department of Community Health, secondhand smoke is directly responsible for the deaths of 2,510 Michigan residents each year.
“The fact that breathing secondhand smoke is dangerous to your health is so well established that 12 states and countless cities and counties have passed laws which protect the public from secondhand smoke in all worksites and public places – including bars and restaurants,” said Ploe. “It’s important for people to realize that non-smoking sections, ventilation systems or open windows are not effective safeguards.”
The American Lung Association offers the following tips for protecting yourself and your family from secondhand smoke: don’t smoke in your home; post “Thank You for Not Smoking” signs; help people who are trying to quit smoking; avoid smoky environments; and let smokers know that you do mind if they smoke near you.