Built Environment

Healthy Homes

The home we live in is one of the major influences on our health and wellness. People spend half of every day, sometimes more, inside their homes. Tracking exposures and health problems in the home can help people understand how often they and their families experience unhealthy living conditions. These data will also help doctors, researchers, and public health officials understand how our homes can be improved to help us stay healthy. Lead in the home, environmental tobacco smoke, radon, and carbon monoxide are all possible harmful exposures in the home. Lead can be detrimental to the mental development of children. Radon exposure is one of the largest risk factors for developing lung cancer, second only to smoking. Smoking or secondhand smoke may also have a synergistic effect with radon amplifying risk of lung cancer. Carbon monoxide poisoning can quickly become deadly with little warning. In addition to these exposures, poor housing conditions like the presence of damp or dusty areas or pests can contribute to the development of respiratory conditions like asthma.

In 2007, the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) conducted the American Housing Survey, which showed that six million households live with moderate or severe physical housing problems. Anyone can suffer from housing related injury and illness; although certain groups such as children, the elderly, or individuals with chronic illness are more vulnerable.

Children, who typically spend the majority of their time indoors, are more at risk to the effects of biological, chemical, and physical exposures. It is important to make every effort to minimize the possible dangers in and around your home. These possible dangers include allergens, asbestos, combustion products (e.g., furnace, water heater, and generator), pests (e.g., cockroaches, bed bugs, mice, etc.), lead based paint, mold, household/automotive cleaners, pesticides/herbicides, radon, and injury hazards. Children are more susceptible to health effects from environmental hazards, especially very young children from pre-birth through the toddler stage.

You can help make your home a healthier place to live, for you and your family by following The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development - Eight Healthy Homes Principles.

Explore healthy homes data

Learn more about healthy homes...