Is Your House Making You Sick?
Air Purifiers, Antibacterial Countertops, Nontoxic Bedding, and Other Products Promise to Make Your Home Healthier
BY GRETCHEN COOK
It took almost ten years before Pam Rothstein—a doctor—decided her house was making her sick. “I couldn’t even carry a laundry basket upstairs,” says Rothstein, who quit her career in emergency medicine to cope with the fibromyalgia and chemical sensitivities she developed after moving into a newly built Darnestown home in 1987.
Research by Rothstein uncovered potential dangers lurking in her house, from the water she drank to the chemicals in her carpet, drapes, paint, and bedding. Even her electrical wires could be toxic.
Four and a half years ago, Rothstein got to work building a healthier home, becoming a pioneer in a trend that is catching on fast. She recruited Montgomery County builder Andy Rosenthal, who agreed to take the American Lung Association’s Health House training program and produce an 8,000-square-foot home in Potomac.
Rothstein worked alongside Rosenthal, researching materials and testing each one that went into the house for anything that might trigger her chemical sensitivities.
Today Rothstein, 53, says she’s 90 percent cured of her ills; her husband Bob’s back problems are gone; her teenage son’s attention deficit disorder has abated; and her two daughters are supremely healthy.
Rothstein figures the special features—such as coated wiring, sealed drywall, and nontoxic paints—added 10 percent to the building cost, but she figures she can make it back on any future resale.
Multiple-chemical sensitivity is a heightened reaction to substances that causes symptoms ranging from respiratory ailments to depression and anxiety. The cause, the prevalence, and even the existence of this and other disorders like fibromyalgia—a musculoskeletal pain and fatigue disorder—is subject to debate. But the growing consensus is that the flood of new chemicals introduced into the environment every year is making people sick.
“We’re on that edge where everybody is starting to realize, ‘I want to be healthy,’ and pretty soon everybody’s going to get proactive,” Rothstein says.
According to Consumer Reports, sales of air purifiers jumped 70 percent between 2000 and 2002. Interest is also booming in nontoxic materials and health-promoting gadgets.
BY GRETCHEN COOK
It took almost ten years before Pam Rothstein—a doctor—decided her house was making her sick. “I couldn’t even carry a laundry basket upstairs,” says Rothstein, who quit her career in emergency medicine to cope with the fibromyalgia and chemical sensitivities she developed after moving into a newly built Darnestown home in 1987.
Research by Rothstein uncovered potential dangers lurking in her house, from the water she drank to the chemicals in her carpet, drapes, paint, and bedding. Even her electrical wires could be toxic.
Four and a half years ago, Rothstein got to work building a healthier home, becoming a pioneer in a trend that is catching on fast. She recruited Montgomery County builder Andy Rosenthal, who agreed to take the American Lung Association’s Health House training program and produce an 8,000-square-foot home in Potomac.
Rothstein worked alongside Rosenthal, researching materials and testing each one that went into the house for anything that might trigger her chemical sensitivities.
Today Rothstein, 53, says she’s 90 percent cured of her ills; her husband Bob’s back problems are gone; her teenage son’s attention deficit disorder has abated; and her two daughters are supremely healthy.
Rothstein figures the special features—such as coated wiring, sealed drywall, and nontoxic paints—added 10 percent to the building cost, but she figures she can make it back on any future resale.
Multiple-chemical sensitivity is a heightened reaction to substances that causes symptoms ranging from respiratory ailments to depression and anxiety. The cause, the prevalence, and even the existence of this and other disorders like fibromyalgia—a musculoskeletal pain and fatigue disorder—is subject to debate. But the growing consensus is that the flood of new chemicals introduced into the environment every year is making people sick.
“We’re on that edge where everybody is starting to realize, ‘I want to be healthy,’ and pretty soon everybody’s going to get proactive,” Rothstein says.
According to Consumer Reports, sales of air purifiers jumped 70 percent between 2000 and 2002. Interest is also booming in nontoxic materials and health-promoting gadgets.
posted by Jeff at 1:17 AM
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