A 'sick' building can make you ill
By Anita Bruzzese
Gannett News Service
We all know that our jobs can make us sick. We get headaches and indigestion from stress and overwork, not to mention the flu and colds from co-workers and customers. But what if the actual building where we work is what's making us sick?
Workers often complain of headaches, dizziness, nausea or difficulty concentrating — but only when they are at work. Once they walk out the door, they feel better.
The Environmental Protection Agency says that while these illnesses may indeed be caused by other things such as allergies or stress, it's clear that the number of workers who complain of being ill in certain buildings is something that should be taken seriously.
Workers in sick buildings often report having itchy skin, a dry cough or fatigue, which may be a result of exposure to chemicals from inside the building. Adhesives, carpeting, upholstery, manufactured wood products, copy machines, pesticides and cleaning agents can give off volatile organic compounds, which can cause such reactions.
Further, employees may be exposed to even low levels of these compounds, which can come from combustion products such as carbon monoxide and nitrogen dioxide. Other exposure hazards: unvented kerosene and gas space heaters, wood stoves, fireplaces and gas stoves.
There are other ways workers can become ill at work. Contaminants can breed in stagnant water that has collected in places such as air ducts, humidifiers and drain pans. And that leaking ceiling? A good place for water to collect and grow bacteria, as well as the damp carpet. Such biological contamination can show up as a cough or muscle aches, and even grow into the Legionella bacterium, which causes Legionnaires' disease.
The EPA recommends that if workers are becoming ill only at work, possible contaminants in a building should be investigated. Some solutions include: routine maintenance, increasing ventilation rates and exhaust, cleaning the air, and providing education and communication to staff.
