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Atmosphere
Special Issues
Effects of Indoor Air Quality on Human Health
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Effects of Indoor Air Quality on Human Health

A special issue of Atmosphere (ISSN 2073-4433). This special issue belongs to the section "Air Quality and Human Health".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 October 2022) | Viewed by 7801

Special Issue Editor

Prof. Dr. Xiaodong Cao

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
School of Aeronautic Science and Engineering, Beihang University, Beijing 100191, China
Interests: built environment; indoor environmental quality; green buildings; occupant health and cognition; human exposure assessment
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Indoor air pollution is considered as a noteworthy health risk factor for humans, leading to millions of premature deaths globally each year. The association between indoor air quality (IAQ) and human health has always been one of the most crucial and hot research topics. Broadly speaking, IAQ refers to the quality of the air in a home, office, school, transport vehicle, aircraft or other built environments, where people spend approximately 90% of their time. Vulnerable populations (e.g., infants, the elderly, and patients) tend to spend even more time indoors. Meanwhile, indoor air pollutant concentrations have increased in recent decades due to inadequate fresh air ventilation and increased use of synthetic building materials, paint, furnishings, pesticides, and daily chemical products. Adverse health effects associated with the exposure to indoor air pollutants can be categorized into sick building syndrome (irritation, headaches, dizziness, nausea, fatigue, etc.), building relative illness (respiratory diseases, heart disease, cancer, etc.) and multiple chemical sensitivity. Indoor environments are also major venues for the airborne transmission of the SARS-CoV-2 virus during the COVID-19 pandemic. Moreover, poor indoor air quality (IAQ) has been demonstrated to be related to a loss of productivity, worse cognitive performance, increased absenteeism and lower satisfaction.

While adverse effects of indoor air pollution have been widely documented, the scientific understanding of IAQ issues needs to evolve. The complex interplay between exposure to multiple indoor air attributes and human response still merits further exploration. The understanding of both the epidemiology and the toxicity mechanism is not clear enough to understand the role of IAQ factors on specific health outcomes, e.g., inflammation, respiratory and cardiac diseases, severe cognitive deficit, cancer, and DNA changes. Notably, scientifically sound metrics are still lacking to quantitatively measure IAQ’s effects on human health and work performance.

In recognition of the above research needs, this Special Issue is being organized to share the advanced and multidisciplinary research efforts exploring the relationship between indoor air quality and human health, comfort and cognitive function. Original or reviewed results from field or controlled measurements, subjective surveys, epidemiological models, and numerical simulations are all welcome contributions. Authors are encouraged to provide scientific evidence or practical suggestions to guide the development of new policies and standards for creating healthier and more productive indoor environments.

Dr. Xiaodong Cao
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Atmosphere is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  •  indoor air quality
  •  indoor environmental quality
  •  healthy buildings
  •  indoor air pollutants
  •  VOCs
  •  sick building syndrome
  •  building relative illness
  •  multiple chemical sensitivity
  •  cognitive function
  •  health risk assessment

Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

16 pages, 802 KiB  
Article
Human Exposure Assessment to Air Pollutants in AC Filters from Agricultural, Industrial, and Residential Areas
by Abdulaziz Abdulrahman AlMulla, Mahmoud Berekaa, Saifullah and Saad Dahlawi
Atmosphere 2022, 13(11), 1899; https://doi.org/10.3390/atmos13111899 - 14 Nov 2022
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 2131
Abstract
High levels of potentially toxic metals and microbes in the atmosphere, especially indoor air, may severely threaten human health. Therefore, the concentration and associated health risks of heavy metals (Cd, Cr, Pb, Cu, Fe, Mn, and Zn), biological pollutants, and their risk to [...] Read more.
High levels of potentially toxic metals and microbes in the atmosphere, especially indoor air, may severely threaten human health. Therefore, the concentration and associated health risks of heavy metals (Cd, Cr, Pb, Cu, Fe, Mn, and Zn), biological pollutants, and their risk to human health were assessed using air condition (AC) filter dust samples. Samples were collected from five locations representing agricultural, industrial, and residential settings of the Eastern Province, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The levels of trace metals varied considerably among sampling areas, with the highest levels of Cr and Cd recorded in the industrial area sites, followed by the agricultural and residential sites. The highest levels of Pb and Fe were found in the agricultural area sites, followed by the industrial and residential area sites. Among all the metals Cd, Cr, and Pb, showed a considerable health risk through a dermal pathway, and health risks for children from indoor dust exposure were higher compared to adults. Among the sites, the highest hazard quotient for these metals was found for Al-Qatif industrial area sites, and among the metals, it was the highest for Cd. The cancer risk from the metals contained in AC filter dust was negligible. Samples collected from agricultural and industrial area sites were substantially contaminated with bacteria and fungi, respectively. Bacterial contaminants were mostly Gram-negative, with considerable antibiotic resistance and hemolytic activity. Thus, indoor air quality assessed by AC filter dust depicted that the trace heavy metals and microorganisms could pose a considerable health risk for long-term exposure. Furthermore, this study demonstrated that AC filter dust could be a unique and reliable test sample for indoor environment assessment. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Effects of Indoor Air Quality on Human Health)
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13 pages, 2286 KiB  
Article
Explore the Benefits of Natural Air: New Insights from Field and Chamber Tests on Cognitive Performance
by Wenmao Zeng, Huan Liu, Shanshan Hou, Xiangwei Qiu, Xinchang Chen, Meng Liu, Dehai Wu and Lumeng Liu
Atmosphere 2022, 13(7), 1006; https://doi.org/10.3390/atmos13071006 - 22 Jun 2022
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1516
Abstract
Exposure to natural environments has a range of health benefits, including enhancing psychological restoration and cognitive development. While there are various explanations on the causes for the benefits of the natural exposure, such as less air pollution and noise, more physical activity, stronger [...] Read more.
Exposure to natural environments has a range of health benefits, including enhancing psychological restoration and cognitive development. While there are various explanations on the causes for the benefits of the natural exposure, such as less air pollution and noise, more physical activity, stronger social interactions, or even more diverse microbial community, etc., this study has zeroed in on the air quality of the natural environment. In addition to low-level pollution, what makes the natural air superior remains unclear. To this end, we conducted a series of psychological evaluation and cognitive tests on a couple of subjects in a national forest park in southwest China. Based on the results, we built an artificial chamber where selected air parameters can be independently manipulated and carried out similar tests in the chamber. We came to the following conclusion. (1) Exposure to real natural environment demonstrated tangible benefits for cognitive performances and mental states and the benefits can be obtained to some extent in the artificial environment by creating air qualities similar to the air in the natural environment. (2) Scents in natural environments may be one of the key beneficial factors. (3) Adopting proper cognitive test is critical for distinguishing the differences made by the natural exposure. Working memory showed marked responses to the natural exposure. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Effects of Indoor Air Quality on Human Health)
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16 pages, 2302 KiB  
Article
Associations of Human Cognitive Abilities with Elevated Carbon Dioxide Concentrations in an Enclosed Chamber
by Xiaodong Cao, Pei Li, Jie Zhang and Liping Pang
Atmosphere 2022, 13(6), 891; https://doi.org/10.3390/atmos13060891 - 30 May 2022
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 3447
Abstract
Fifteen participants were exposed in an enclosed environmental chamber to investigate the effects of elevated carbon dioxide (CO2) concentration on their cognitive abilities. Three CO2 conditions (1500, 3500, and 5000 ppm) were achieved by constant air supply and additional ultrapure [...] Read more.
Fifteen participants were exposed in an enclosed environmental chamber to investigate the effects of elevated carbon dioxide (CO2) concentration on their cognitive abilities. Three CO2 conditions (1500, 3500, and 5000 ppm) were achieved by constant air supply and additional ultrapure CO2. All participants received the same exposure under each condition, during which they performed six cognitive tests evaluating human perception, attention, short-term working memory, risky decision-making, and executive ability. Generalized additive mixed effects model (GAMM) results showed no statistically significant differences in performance on the reaction time (RT) tests, the speed perception test, and the 2-back test. This suggests that elevated CO2 concentrations below 5000 ppm did not affect participants’ perception and short-term working memory. However, a significant increase in response time was observed in the visual search (VS) test, the balloon simulation risk test (BART), and the Stroop test at 5000 ppm compared to lower exposure concentrations. The slower responses reflected the detrimental effects of elevated CO2 concentrations on visual attention, risky decision-making, and executive ability. The findings suggest that the control level of CO2 concentrations should be tighter in enclosed workplaces where rapid response and operational safety are required. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Effects of Indoor Air Quality on Human Health)
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