For adults with asthma, using fans, air purifiers, or other ventilation and exhaust systems—especially in kitchens and bathrooms—is one of the best ways to reduce the risk of flare-ups at home.
That’s the key finding of a large, statewide study of how home environments affect adults with asthma in Texas.
“Most studies of this type focus on children, but because most cases of asthma in the US involve adults, we looked at them and their indoor environment.”
Alexander Obeng, a doctoral student at Texas A&M University School of Public Health and lead author of the study
He added that Texas was an ideal setting for the study because of its wide range of climate and housing conditions.
“Air conditioning is constant across much of the state during the warmer months, which reduces natural ventilation and can increase indoor pollutant levels,” he said. “In addition, many older homes, mobile homes and apartment buildings have problems with excessive moisture and pests.”
For the study, published in Atmosphere, the team examined data on 1,600 adults with asthma collected between 2019 and 2022 to assess the effects between household and environmental determinants of asthma morbidity in Texas. The team analyzed four outcomes – asthma attacks, symptoms, sleep problems and limitations in daily activities – and how they were linked to a person’s environment.
“We found two main causes of asthma in the home – not having an exhaust fan in the kitchen and bathroom and smoking – which confirms previous research,” Obeng said.
In addition, the team found that people were more likely to have asthma attacks, frequent symptoms or trouble sleeping, and to stay active if they smoked cigarettes or did not use air purifiers. On the other hand, people who lived in homes that didn’t have problems with mold, mice or rats and didn’t have furry pets had fewer asthma problems.
“The good news is that we can take steps to manage asthma at home by improving airflow, using air purifiers, not smoking indoors and minimizing dust or pet allergens,” she said.
The data also showed that women, older people and black adults suffer more from asthma complications than other groups, reflecting disparities in income, housing quality and access to health care that Obeng said can exacerbate the burden of asthma for some.
To reduce the burden of asthma for these groups, the study recommended three strategies:
- Financial assistance. Offer vouchers or grants to help low-income families purchase portable air purifiers, upgrade their homes, and improve household ventilation.
- Support for tenants. Require landlords to maintain healthy air standards and fix ventilation problems.
- Better education. Ask health care professionals to teach patients how to remove asthma triggers (such as dust or mold) from their homes as part of their regular medical checkups.
“Adults spend up to 90% of their time indoors, where the air can actually be dirtier than outdoors,” Obeng said. “Adequate environmental changes at home could help adults with asthma manage their condition more effectively.”
Professors involved in the study were Genny Carrillo and Taehyun Roh, both from the Texas A&M School of Public Health, and Alejandro Moreno-Rangel from the University of Strathclyde in Scotland.
