Housing Conditions and Children’s Respiratory Health

Understanding how respiratory health risks are associated with housing is essential to designing effective strategies to improve children’s quality of life. A survey designed to determine the relationship between respiratory health and housing conditions was completed by 3,423 parents of grades 3 and 4 children in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. Air samples were then taken in the homes of a subset of 715 parents – one in the child’s bedroom and another in the basement – with an exterior neighborhood air sample as a control measure. Finally, an engineering audit of each residence was conducted – including measurements of relative humidity, temperature, and moisture content of walls. Results indicate that: (a) Self-reported visible mould in the home is a significant independent predictor of persistent colds alone as well as of asthma in combination with persistent colds in children. (b) A high percentage of homes (64% of bedrooms, 65% of basements) in Winnipeg have mould CFU levels of ≥100/m3-the most common genus type being Cladosporium. (c) Self-reported presence of visible mould in the home is significantly associated with measured CFU mould counts ≥ 100/m3, based on air samples taken from both the child’s bedroom and basement. (d) Presence of Cladosporium in both the child’s bedroom and basement is significantly associated with childhood asthma in combination with persistent cold symptoms. (e) Measurements of relative humidity and/or air temperatures in the child’s home are not reliable indicators of high mould CFU counts; moisture content in the walls has a small but significant association with mould CFU counts. The significance of these results for the respiratory health of children is discussed as well as policy directions for healthy housing.