Estimates of Improved Productivity and Health from Better Indoor Environments

Abstract The existing literature contains strong evidence that characteristics of buildings and indoor environments significantly influence rates of respiratory disease, allergy and asthma symptoms, sick building symptoms, and worker performance. Theoretical considerations, and limited empirical data, suggest that existing technologies and procedures can improve indoor environments in a manner that significantly increases health and productivity. At present, we can develop only crude estimates of the magnitude of productivity gains that may be obtained by providing better indoor environments; however, the projected gains are very large. For the U.S., we estimate potential annual savings and productivity gains of $6 billion to $19 billion from reduced respiratory disease; $1 billion to $4 billion from reduced allergies and asthma, $10 billion to $20 billion from reduced sick building syndrome symptoms, and $12 billion to $125 billion from direct improvements in worker performance that are unrelated to health. Sample calculations indicate that the potential financial benefits of improving indoor environments exceed costs by a factor of 18 to 47. The policy implications of the findings are discussed and include a recommendation for additional research.     

Consumer responses to an off-flavor in juice in the presence of specific health claims

Adult US subjects (n=78) tasted and rated three juice samples containing 0, 0.3, and 0.6% KCl blind and informed. Three subgroups were informed that the juices contained functional ingredients to improve either (1) physical endurance and energy (2) mental alertness and memory, or (3) mood and emotional well-being. A control group received no information. Degree of liking and likelihood of consuming the juice once, twice or four times a day, for a total of four or 16 times, were rated. Adulteration with KCl decreased all ratings of liking, while information about health benefits increased ratings of liking in subgroups 1 and 2. Likelihood of consumption decreased with increasing KCl, with the increasing number of times per day, and with total dose regimen. The data suggest that the consumption of a functional food will be inversely related to the severity of off-flavor and to the required frequency and duration of consumption. No support was found for the notion that a slight off-flavor is a positive marker of health benefits to consumers.     

Past,present and future activities in food hygiene of the Veterinary Public Health Unit (VPH) of the World Health Organization

The paper contains a review of the activities in the field of food hygiene performed by the Veterinary Public Health Unit of WHO in close collaboration with other divisions and programmes of the Organization. It gives a general understanding about the purpose and objectives of such activities in the past and present, and near future. The paper mentions the most important achievements which were reached by the Organization in meat and milk hygiene, fish and shellfish hygiene, surveillance of foodborne diseases, microbiological specifications for foods, food virology education and training in food hygiene and elaboration of a strategy on prevention and control of foodborne diseases due to food of animal origin. The paper contains 44 references, the majority of which are still available at the World Health Organization.     

Criteria for the health surveillance of workers exposed to repetitive movements

In the light of the experience and guidelines developed by other countries and of Italian legislative and operational conditions, the authors outline a strategy for a health surveillance programme for work-related musculoskeletal disorders of the upper limbs. In particular, the paper defines the various aims of the health surveillance implementation (i.e. existence of risks or effects). A screening schedule is presented based on subsequent investigations (first and second level surveillance); the authors discuss the principal methods used for processing the results of the health surveillance programme, in collective (i.e. statistical comparisons, planning of periodical investigations) and individual terms (job fitness judgements, reporting of suspected occupational diseases). programme and identifies significant relevant criteria for its     

Bibliography

Stress management programmes have become a feature of workplace training programmes and health-related activities. What they expect to achieve, or how, is not always clear. Positivistic science and medicine has difficulty with the complexities of involved human experiences. The value systems of the individual, the organization, and the society interact in complex and powerful ways, forming an inner reality which demands new ways of study and understanding.

Stress management intervention has to be seen not only as an attack on disease but also as a vehicle for promoting organizational and individual well-being. Doctors going into these areas must realize they are entering a higher-order system and thereby changing their tracitional professional role, and that their results will be measured against different criteria. Competition for scarce resources, and perhaps hostility from management, will be new experiences. Management will have a different world view and this has to be recognized and respected. Mutual interests must be identified. A formula might be: ‘health in the individual is health in the organization and vice versa’.

The theoretical models of stress and the approaches currently used in stress management programmes will be reviewed critically in an attempt to break the constraints of illness-dominated thinking and to envisage their potential for positive health and personal development. The case of ‘the healthy back’ will be taken as an example of this wider health-promoting model.     

Harnessing social dynamics through persuasive technology to promote healthier lifestyle

In light of current calls by medical professionals to confront the global issue of obesity and related illnesses, we developed a mobile application called STEP UP that monitors physical activity and provides data that can be easily shared within a social network. We then conducted an exploratory, theoretical study based on the theory of reasoned action (TRA) followed by an experimental trial and user study. The purpose of the studies was to explore the effect of persuasive technology on physical activity behavior and to investigate its effectiveness in motivating users to use the technology to be more physically active. The application was found to have a positive effect on the participants and their level of physical activity. They enjoyed using the application and were motivated to walk more, especially when enabled to share their step counts with their friends. The social component of the application clearly enhanced users’ walking experience, as the atmosphere of friendly competition motivated them to walk more. Based on user responses, we conclude that a further enhanced application that includes chat functionality may be even more successful in supporting increased physical activity and thus healthier lifestyle.     

Incidence of adenoviruses in raw and treated water

Adenoviruses are of major public health importance and are associated with a variety of clinical manifestations, i.e. gastroenteritis, eye infections and respiratory infections. The importance of water in the epidemiology of adenoviruses and the potential health risks constituted by adenoviruses in water sources and supplies are widely recognised. This study was conducted to assess the incidence of human adenoviruses in raw and treated water systems. Various raw and treated water were routinely monitored for the presence of adenoviruses, over a 1-year period (July 2000-June 2001). The supplies were derived from acceptable quality surface water sources using treatment processes, which conform to international standards for the production of safe drinking water. Adenoviruses were detected by firstly amplifying the viruses in cell cultures and then amplifying the extracted nucleic acids of these viruses using molecular techniques (nested PCR). The results indicated human adenoviruses present in 13 (12.75%) of the raw and 9 (4.41%) of the treated water samples tested. The combination of cell culture and nested PCR has proved to be a quick and reliable method for the detection of adenoviruses in water environments.     

中美金属与非金属矿山安全健康标准比对分析

通过对比我国与美国金属非金属矿山安全健康标准的制定背景、标准体系结构、标准修订办法以及具体的技术指标,找出了我国与美国金属与非金属矿山安全健康标准之间的差异,并在比对的基础之上,结合我国金属非金属矿山的实际生产情况,对具有差异的指标提出了具体修改建议,为完善我国《金属非金属矿山安全规程》提供参考意见。     

Dampness in buildings and health. Nordic interdisciplinary review of the scientific evidence on associations between exposure to "dampness" in buildings and health effects (NORDDAMP)

Several epidemiological investigations concerning indoor environments have indicated that "dampness" in buildings is associated to health effects such as respiratory symptoms, asthma and allergy. The aim of the present interdisciplinary review is to evaluate this association as shown in the epidemiological literature. A literature search identified 590 peer-reviewed articles of which 61 have been the foundation for this review. The review shows that "dampness" in buildings appears to increase the risk for health effects in the airways, such as cough, wheeze and asthma. Relative risks are in the range of OR 1.4-2.2. There also seems to be an association between "dampness" and other symptoms such as tiredness, headache and airways infections. It is concluded that the evidence for a causal association between "dampness" and health effects is strong. However, the mechanisms are unknown. Several definitions of dampness have been used in the studies, but all seems to be associated with health problems. Sensitisation to mites may be one but obviously not the only mechanism. Even if the mechanisms are unknown, there is sufficient evidence to take preventive measures against dampness in buildings.     

EMD-based random decrement technique for modal parameter identification of an existing railway bridge

Vibrational measurement data are often nonstationary and modal parameter identification based on these data is of practical value for structural health monitoring and condition assessment. The empirical mode decomposition (EMD) is a most recent tool for analysis of nonstationary signals. An EMD-based random decrement (RD) technique is presented to identify modal parameters from monitoring vibrational data. The nonstationary measurement data are first decomposed into a series of quasi-stationary intrinsic mode functions (IMFs) by EMD. The RD technique is then applied to the selected IMFs to obtain the free-decay response. The modal frequencies and damping ratios are finally identified from the free-decay response by minimizing the error between the measured free-decay responses and the predicted responses from a parametric model. The present method is applied to extract the modal parameters of the Nanjing Yangtze River Bridge from the measured responses. The identification result is compared to those from finite element analysis as well as from the experimental result identified with the peak-picking (PP) method. In addition, the modal frequencies of the bridge loaded with heavy trains are also identified and compared to the ‘empty’ bridge. The EMD-based random decrement (RD) technique provides an effective and promising tool for modal parameter identification for large bridges and other structures.