Research in child day care centers in Helsinki shows purifying the air reduces infectious illness by almost 20%, and that purifying the air in all public spaces should be examined.
Research in child day care centers in Helsinki shows purifying the air reduces infectious illness by almost 20%, and that purifying the air in all public spaces should be examined.
Tulos haastaa pitkään vallalla olleen käsityksen siitä, että päiväkotien taudit leviäisivät lähinnä pisaroiden ja kosketuksen välityksellä.
I’m so, so hopeful that I’m a few decades people will look back at our terrible indoor air quality the way we look at indoor smoking, breathing in leaded gasoline fumes, etc. One of those things that just seems like an unimaginable way to live once you’ve experienced the alternative.
Our liberal use of propane indoors will be seen as completely unhinged.
I am not one of those anti-vaxx loonies who are like "you got an immune system so you're fine without all this crap", however isn't it an accepted view that the immune system needs training to operate well? Hygiene hypothesis comes to mind and especially during those years as a child many parts of the immune system are forming and developing.
Going too clean everywhere will counter that and lead to worse outcomes later in life if you get sick with something. So while I sympathise as a parent with a preschooler who is terrible when sick, it is useful to not be too super clean in that environment.
Now in areas where more grown-ups are working, office spaces and so on, sure. Not quite against that.
Kids in daycare are sick a wild amount of time. Nearly constantly during the indoor seasons, and only often in outdoor seasons.
I cannot read the article (laungage barrier), but I expect being 20% less sick is a net gain. Instead of 20 illnesses a year, only 16.
I admit I don't know very much about any of this, but I've never heard of children who grow up in relatively isolated circumstances, for example home schooling, having lower functioning immune systems?
I can't find anything on differences in indoor hygiene causing a difference to the immune system. Homeschooled children will still be exposed to the same viruses through their parents or anyone else. It may very well be a misunderstood study from the 80s. It is currently neither confirmed or proven wrong.
However I've found a slightly different study. It compares children who go to conventional kindergartens to children in outdoor kindergartens. I'm not sure if you're familiar with that these "forest-kindergardens", but the general idea is that the kids are outside all day. Due to the need for warm clothing and constantly getting dirty, they usually wear the same outdoor suit throughout the week. They're exposed to natural bacteria a lot more, but less so to airborne viruses.
So it's not exactly the same thing you asked for, but it does show a difference in their immune systems.
https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/sciadv.aba2578
Another study showing the same thing through a different comparison of children in rural vs. suburban areas.
https://www.ucc.ie/en/news/2023/rural-environment-supports-childrens-immune-systems.html
The problem is when you are constantly sick because of the school, its a real problem my family in Florida faces every school year. I visited them this last year during the spring and they were sick for the entire visit and apparently it happens every year now. Plus, after covid everything seems like it got much worse on the preventing infection side of things, so this tech would most likely be a net positive, even if it does affect the immune system and its natural defenses.
If only there was something that could help us with that. 🌲🌳🌴
Indoor plants help add oxygen/reduce co2 as well as help regulate relative humidity, and some research suggests they may absorb certain VOCs, but they do nothing to trap pathogens. Any ol’ paper filter does a great job of trapping pathogens though.
Instead we'll build something that needs a subscription, and you can only get the filters from 1st party sources and the filters have a chip that requires you to swap them even if they are not full
What a wasteful idea. Completely unnecessary in most cases.
Just as wasteful as all the other things we do for hygiene, such as soap and sanitizers. Some things are worth spending on I think, both in terms of money and in resources.
Those of us with weakened immune systems disagree vehemently. Sure would be nice to be able to enter an elevator without wearing an n95.