Household hygiene practices in relation to dampness at home and current wheezing and rhino-conjunctivitis among school age children

Good household hygiene practices may improve indoor air quality in the domestic environment. Conversely, a 'hygiene hypothesis' is challenging the importance of hygiene and sanitation at home. This study aims to investigate the relationship between household hygiene practices and dampness...

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Main Authors: Zhang, Guicheng, Spickett, Jeffery, Lee, Andy, Rumchev, Krassi, Stick, S.
Format: Journal Article
Published: Blackwell Publishing 2005
Subjects:
Online Access:http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/34294
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author Zhang, Guicheng
Spickett, Jeffery
Lee, Andy
Rumchev, Krassi
Stick, S.
author_facet Zhang, Guicheng
Spickett, Jeffery
Lee, Andy
Rumchev, Krassi
Stick, S.
author_sort Zhang, Guicheng
building Curtin Institutional Repository
collection Online Access
description Good household hygiene practices may improve indoor air quality in the domestic environment. Conversely, a 'hygiene hypothesis' is challenging the importance of hygiene and sanitation at home. This study aims to investigate the relationship between household hygiene practices and dampness at home and current wheezing, asthma and other allergic conditions among Australian children. Nine hundred and ninety-six children from four primary schools in Perth, Western Australia, were recruited for a domestic environmental and health survey during March and April of 2002. The results showed that high cleanliness scores were negatively associated with moulds at home before and after adjustment for age of dwelling (p < 0.001). High ventilation scores were inversely related with damp patches, condensation and moulds at home (p < 0.05). However, households with high cleanliness scores appeared to have significantly higher prevalence of current wheezing (p < 0.05) and current rhino-conjunctivitis (p < 0.05) in children. The association remained even after controlling for confounders such as age and gender of children, asthma history of parents, passive smoking and dampness at home.
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publishDate 2005
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spelling curtin-20.500.11937-342942019-02-19T05:35:23Z Household hygiene practices in relation to dampness at home and current wheezing and rhino-conjunctivitis among school age children Zhang, Guicheng Spickett, Jeffery Lee, Andy Rumchev, Krassi Stick, S. hygiene practices children dampness at home respiratory symptoms Good household hygiene practices may improve indoor air quality in the domestic environment. Conversely, a 'hygiene hypothesis' is challenging the importance of hygiene and sanitation at home. This study aims to investigate the relationship between household hygiene practices and dampness at home and current wheezing, asthma and other allergic conditions among Australian children. Nine hundred and ninety-six children from four primary schools in Perth, Western Australia, were recruited for a domestic environmental and health survey during March and April of 2002. The results showed that high cleanliness scores were negatively associated with moulds at home before and after adjustment for age of dwelling (p < 0.001). High ventilation scores were inversely related with damp patches, condensation and moulds at home (p < 0.05). However, households with high cleanliness scores appeared to have significantly higher prevalence of current wheezing (p < 0.05) and current rhino-conjunctivitis (p < 0.05) in children. The association remained even after controlling for confounders such as age and gender of children, asthma history of parents, passive smoking and dampness at home. 2005 Journal Article http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/34294 10.1111/j.1399-3038.2005.00325.x Blackwell Publishing restricted
spellingShingle hygiene practices
children
dampness at home
respiratory symptoms
Zhang, Guicheng
Spickett, Jeffery
Lee, Andy
Rumchev, Krassi
Stick, S.
Household hygiene practices in relation to dampness at home and current wheezing and rhino-conjunctivitis among school age children
title Household hygiene practices in relation to dampness at home and current wheezing and rhino-conjunctivitis among school age children
title_full Household hygiene practices in relation to dampness at home and current wheezing and rhino-conjunctivitis among school age children
title_fullStr Household hygiene practices in relation to dampness at home and current wheezing and rhino-conjunctivitis among school age children
title_full_unstemmed Household hygiene practices in relation to dampness at home and current wheezing and rhino-conjunctivitis among school age children
title_short Household hygiene practices in relation to dampness at home and current wheezing and rhino-conjunctivitis among school age children
title_sort household hygiene practices in relation to dampness at home and current wheezing and rhino-conjunctivitis among school age children
topic hygiene practices
children
dampness at home
respiratory symptoms
url http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/34294