With some notable exceptions, most people spend far more time indoors than outdoors. Thus, the quality of indoor air is an important public health concern. Considerable effort has gone into measuring and monitoring the quality of outdoor air and its health effects. But we often know far less about indoor air contaminants and their health effects. This call featured experts whose research focuses on indoor concerns internationally and in the US:
William (Bill) Martin, MD, associate director for Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, NIH. His recent research has focused on the health hazards, particularly for women and children, created by indoor cook stoves still used in many countries around the world.
Ami Zota, ScD, MS, postdoctoral fellow in the Program on Reproductive Health and the Environment Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology, and Reproductive Sciences University of California San Francisco. Dr. Zota uses her expertise in epidemiology, exposure assessment, and environmental justice to understand the interplay between the indoor environment and environmental health disparities.
Ruthann Rudel, MS, director of Research at the Silent Spring Institute, will speak about endocrine-disrupting chemicals (EDCs) in indoor air and house dust from everyday consumer products and building materials. Her research has shown that indoor air levels of EDCs are higher than outdoor levels and that exposures in the home can be the most important source of exposure.
Ted Schettler, MD, MPH, CHE Science Director, and Science Director of the Science and Environmental Health Network; Coordinator of CHE's Science Working Group provided a brief science update for this call.
Elise Miller, CHE's director, moderated.