Abstract
The city of Chongqing has high outdoor temperatures and humidity throughout the year and consequently a high risk of dampness and mold problems in dwellings. As part of the China, Children, Homes, Health (CCHH), associations between home characteristics and children’s asthma, allergies, and related symptoms were investigated in Chongqing, China. A cross-sectional questionnaire survey on home characteristics including dampness and symptoms of asthma and allergies in 5299 children was performed. Data for 4754 children (3–6 years) and their homes were analyzed. Results showed that 35.1% of homes were reported to have “damp bedding”, 14.3% “condensation on window panes (higher than 5 cm)”, 11.6% “mouldy odor”, 9.3% “water leakage”, 8.3% “damp stains” and 5.3% “visible mould”. Wheezing and rhinitis ever were reported for 27.0% and 51.1% children respectively, and rhinitis, wheezing, cough at night and eczema in the last 12 months were reported for 38.1%, 20.5%, 18.9% and 13.2% respectively. Doctor-diagnosed asthma was reported for 8.3% of children, and doctor-diagnosed rhinitis for 6.2%. Dampness in homes was generally strongly associated with asthma and allergies among Chongqing children. The strongest association was found between “visible mould” and doctor-diagnosed rhinitis, and the adjusted Odds Ratio (ORA) was 2.27 (95% CI: 1.48, 3.49). “Damp bedding” was significantly associated with all asthma and allergic symptoms, but doctor-diagnosed asthma and rhinitis. The behavior of “putting bedding to sunshine” could effectively reduce the prevalence of asthma and allergic symptoms, and the risk of bedding affected with damp was reduced significantly when bedding was put to sunshine frequently.
Article PDF
Similar content being viewed by others
Avoid common mistakes on your manuscript.
References
Andrae S, Axelson O, Bjorksten B, et al. Symptoms of bronchial hyperreactivity and asthma in relation to environmental factors. Arch Dis Child, 1988, 63: 473–478
Strachan D P, Sanders C H. Damp housing and childhood asthma: Respiratory effects of indoor air temperature and humidity. J Epidemiol Community Health, 1989, 43: 7–14
Brunekreef B, Dockery D W, Speizer F E, et al. Home dampness and respiratory morbidity in children. Am Rev Respir Dis, 1989, 140: 1363–1367
Dales R E, Zwanenburg H, Burnett R, et al. Respiratory health effects of home dampness and molds among Canadian children. Am J Epidemiol, 1991, 134: 196–203
Wickman M, Nordvall S L, Pershagen G, et al. House dust mite sensitization in children and residential characteristics in a temperate region. J Allergy Clin Immunol, 1991, 88: 89–95
Wickman M, Gravesen S, Nordvall S L, et al. Indoor viable dust-bound microfungi in relation to residential characteristics, living habits, and symptoms in atopic and control children. J Allergy Clin Immunol, 1992, 89: 752–759
Wickman M, Nordvall S L, Pershagen G, et al. Mite allergens during 18 months of intervention. Allergy, 1994, 49: 114–119
Jaakkola J J, Jaakkola N, Ruotsalainen R. Home dampness and molds as determinants of respiratory symptoms and asthma in pre-school children. J Expo Anal Environ Epidemiol, 1993, 3(Suppl): 129–142
Sundell J, Wickman M, Pershagen G, et al. Ventilation in homes infested by house-dust mites. Allergy, 1995, 50: 106–112
Yang C Y, Chu J F, Cheng M F, et al. Effects of indoor environmental factors on respiratory health of children in subtropical climate. Environ Res, 1997, 75: 49–55
Nafstad P, Oie L, Mehl R, et al. Residential dampness problems and symptoms and signs of bronchial obstruction in young Norwegian children. Am J Respir Crit Care Med, 1998, 157: 410–414
Ronmark E, Lundback B, Jonsson E, et al. Asthma, type-1 allergy and related conditions in 7- and 8-year-old children in northern Sweden: Prevalence rates and risk factor pattern. Respir Med, 1998, 92: 316–324
Bornehag C G, Sundell J, Hagerhed-Engman L, et al. ’Dampness’ at home and its association with airway, nose, and skin symptoms among 10851 preschool children in Sweden: A cross-sectional study. Indoor Air, 2005, 15(Suppl): 48–55
Simoni M, Lombardi E, Berti G, et al. Mould/dampness exposure at home is associated with respiratory disorders in Italian children and adolescents: The SIDRIA-2 study. Occup Environ Med, 2005, 62: 616–622
Naydenov K. Association between home exposure and asthma and allergies among children in Bulgaria: The ALL-HOME study. Doctoral Dissertation. Lyngby: Technical University of Denmark, 2007
Bornehag C G, Blomquist G, Gyntelberg F, et al. Dampness in buildings and health-Nordic interdisciplinary review of the scientific evidence on associations between exposure to “dampness” in buildings and health effects (NORDDAMP). Indoor Air, 2001, 11: 72–86
Bornehag C G, Sundell J, Bonini S, et al. Dampness in buildings as a risk factor for health effects, EUROEXPO: A multidisciplinary review of the literature (1998–2000) on dampness and mite exposure in buildings and health effects. Indoor Air, 2004, 14: 243–257
Institute of Medicine (IOM). Damp Indoor Spaces and Health. Washington, DC: National Academies Press, 2004
WHO (World Health Organization) Europe. WHO Guidelines for Indoor Air Quality: Dampness and Mould. Copenhagen: World Health Organization, 2009
Mendell M J, Mirer A G, Cheung K, et al. Respiratory and allergic health effects of dampness, mold, and dampness-related agents: A review of the epidemiologic evidence. Environ Health Perspect, 2011, 119: 748–756
Sundell J. On the history of indoor air quality and health. Indoor Air, 2004, 14(Suppl): 51–58
Verhoeff A P, Van Strien R T, Van Wijnen J H, et al. Damp housing and childhood respiratory symptoms: The role of sensitization to dust mites and molds. Am J Epidemiol, 1995, 141: 103–110
Aberg N, Sundell J, Eriksson B, et al. Prevalence of allergic diseases in schoolchildren in relation to family history, upper respiratory infections, and residential characteristics. Allergy, 1996, 51: 232–237
Bornehag C G, Sundell J, Sigsgaard T. Dampness in buildings and health (DBH): Report from an ongoing epidemiological investigation on the association between indoor environmental factors and health effects among children in Sweden. Indoor Air, 2004, 14 (Suppl): 59–66
Tham K W, Zuraimi M S, Koh D, et al. Associations between home dampness and presence of molds with asthma and allergy symptoms among young children in the tropics. Pediatr Allergy Immunol, 2007, 18: 418–424
Pirastu R, Bellu C, Greco P, et al. Indoor exposure to environmental tobacco smoke and dampness: Respiratory symptoms in Sardinian children-DRIAS study. Environ Res, 2009, 109: 59–65
Pekkanen J, Hyvarinen A, Haverinen-Shaughnessy U, et al. Moisture damage and childhood asthma: A population-based incident case-control study. Eur Respir J, 2007, 29: 509–515
Jaakkola J J, Hwang B F, Jaakkola N. Home dampness and molds, parental atopy, and asthma in childhood: A six-year population-based cohort study. Environ Health Perspect, 2005, 113: 357–361
Larsson M, Hagerhed-Engman L, Sigsgaard T, et al. Incidence rates of asthma, rhinitis and eczema symptoms and influential factors in young children in Sweden. Acta Paediatr, 2008, 97: 1210–1215
Karvonen A M, Hyvarinen A, Roponen M, et al. Confirmed moisture damage at home, respiratory symptoms and atopy in early life: A birth-cohort study. Pediatrics, 2009, 124: 329–338
Sun Y, Zhang Y, Sundell J, et al. Dampness at dorm and its associations with allergy and airways infection among college students in China: A cross-sectional study. Indoor Air, 2009, 19: 174–182
Sun Y. On the association between dorm environmental factors and allergies among college students (in Chinese). Doctoral Dissertation. Tianjin: Tianjin University, 2007
Yang C Y, Chiu J F, Chiu H F, et al. Damp housing conditions and respiratory symptoms in primary school children. Pediatr Pulmonol, 1997, 24: 73–77
Wang H Y, Chen Y Z, Ma Y, et al. Disparity of asthma prevalence in Chinese schoolchildren is due to differences in lifestyle factors (in Chinese). Zhonghua Er Ke Za Zhi, 2006, 44: 41–45
Wang J. Domestic environmental factors and its associations with health in Chongqing (in Chinese). Master Dissertation. Chongqing: Chongqing University, 2011
Pearce N, Weiland S, Keil U, et al. Self-reported prevalence of asthma symptoms in children in Australia, England, Germany and New Zealand: an international comparison using the ISAAC protocol. Eur Respir J, 1993, 6: 1455–1461
The international study of asthma and allergies in childhood (ISAAC) steering committee. Worldwide variation in prevalence of symptoms of asthma, allergic rhinoconjunctivitis, and atopic eczema: ISAAC. Lancet, 1998, 351: 1225–1232
Fisk W J, Lei-Gomez Q, Mendell M J. Meta-analyses of the associations of respiratory health effects with dampness and mold in homes. Indoor Air, 2007, 17: 284–296
Wang P. Epidemiology: An Introduction for Medical Students. Tianjin: Tianjin Science & Technology Translation & Publishing Corp, 2011
Hagerhed-Engman L, Bornehag C G, Sundell J, et al. “Dampness in Buildings and Health (DBH)”: Building characteristics as predictors of ‘dampness’ in 8681 Swedish dwellings. In: Proceedings of 9th International Conference on Indoor Air Quality and Climate 2002, 2002, Monterey, California, USA. 7–12
Wang H, Li B Z, Yang Q, et al. Current situation on dampness of children’s living environment in Chongqing (in Chinese). J Central South Univ, 2012, 43(Suppl): 1–4
Infante-Rivard C. Childhood asthma and indoor environmental risk factors. Am J Epidemiol, 1993, 137: 834–844
Tariq S M, Matthews S M, Stevens M, et al. Sensitization to Alternaria and Cladosporium by the age of 4 years. Clin Exp Allergy, 1996, 26: 794–798
Emenius G, Svartengren M, Korsgaard J, et al. Building characteristics, indoor air quality and recurrent wheezing in very young children (BAMSE). Indoor Air, 2004, 14: 34–42
Sakaguchi M, Inoue S, Yasueda H, et al. Measurement of allergens mite allergens (Der I and Der II) in the house. Int Arch Allergy Appl Immunol, 1989, 90: 190–192
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Additional information
This article is published with open access at Springerlink.com
Rights and permissions
This article is published under an open access license. Please check the 'Copyright Information' section either on this page or in the PDF for details of this license and what re-use is permitted. If your intended use exceeds what is permitted by the license or if you are unable to locate the licence and re-use information, please contact the Rights and Permissions team.
About this article
Cite this article
Wang, H., Li, B., Yang, Q. et al. Dampness in dwellings and its associations with asthma and allergies among children in Chongqing: A cross-sectional study. Chin. Sci. Bull. 58, 4259–4266 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11434-013-5774-6
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11434-013-5774-6