Geography Reference
In-Depth Information
health problems created by these indoors environments (Godish 2001 ). In the less
developed world the continued use of charcoal or wood burning fires for cooking,
with inadequate smoke extraction, leads to respiratory problems and far too many
premature deaths, estimated at 4.3 million annually (WHO 2014a ). In the developed
world the hazards associated with the historic use of asbestos for insulation and
lead in paint has become well known, and their poisonous effects have gradually
been removed by eliminating them in new buildings, although older structures may
still have these and other contaminants. The health and crime effects of lead in
paint and from car emission fumes have already been described in the discussion
on Safe Cities (Chap. 12). Although these and other poisonous materials are being
identified and eradicated, a wider set of problems associated with indoor living
have come from what has been described as 'the sick building syndrome'. Indeed, it
was estimated in 1984 that up to 30 % of new office buildings were affected by the
problem (EPA 1991 ). A wide range of factors contribute to this syndrome, such as:
poor ventilation causing polluted air to circulate; poorly sited intakes which bring in
exhaust and other fumes; biological contaminants in water ducts and tanks; various
toxic chemical emissions from insulation materials, plywood and artificial fibres, as
well as from the over-use of poisonous cleaning chemicals; while dust containing
materials brought from outside, as well as insects, spores, dirt and skin particles,
exacerbates asthmatic conditions, itself a disease that is rapidly increasing. Fortu-
nately, the smoking bans in workplaces, restaurants and public places has helped
reduced the problem. It must be acknowledged that it was often cities that began
the process of making such practices illegal and subject to fines. Another problem
comes from the fact that living mainly indoors in a climate-controlled environment
means that the body does not have to consume so many calories to keep warm. So
people with the same eating habits are more likely to become overweight by spend-
ing too much time indoors.
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Sunlight Deficiencies
The increase in indoor living has also reduced exposure to sunlight and its ultra-
violet radiation which creates health-giving vitamin D in the body. Without it there
are sunlight deficiencies. In the densely populated slums of nineteenth century cit-
ies it led to high incidences of rickets in children—a disease of bone deformation.
Traditional societies in northern climes were protected because their diet included
high levels of vitamin D from oily fish. Fortunately the disease was largely eradi-
cated in developed countries in the twentieth century by lower density layouts, and
mandatory green spaces in new housing areas, as well as by dietary supplements
containing the essential vitamin D, such as by the provision of free milk and the
cod liver oil supplements given to children in Britain during World War II (Gille
2004 ). Sadly, new cases of rickets have emerged in children occupying crowded
houses in parts of London (Michie 2013 ). A reduction in vitamin D can also lead to
a depressive illness known as Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD). Originally seen
in countries with long winters and cloudy skies, such as in the deep, fiordic coastal
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