Bad Air In An Office Building Makes You Stupid
Air quality affects the mind, according to a recent Newsweek article. A landmark study published in October 2015 in the journal Environmental Health Perspectives found a strong link between air quality and cognitive function. In the paper, the researchers gathered 24 professionals of various stripes and had them work in the same office, where the air quality could be altered and carefully monitored. Each of the participants worked in the office for six days, during which time they were exposed to differing levels of ventilation, carbon dioxide and the types of VOCs ubiquitous in indoor environments, according to the article. On each day, the subjects took tests measuring a wide range of cognitive abilities.
One of the parameters tested was the difference between air quality in the average office building compared with that in a “green” building that meets standards for occupant health and energy efficiency set by the LEED council. The scientists found that in the green condition—where air was better ventilated and had lower carbon dioxide and VOC concentrations—participants scored 61 percent higher in cognitive function compared with those in conventional office building conditions. When exposed to air ventilated at twice the rate required in the LEED certification, a condition the authors named “green+,” participants’ cognitive scores jumped 100 percent.
Click HERE to read the Newsweek article.