Perspectives Children’s Environmenal Health: The School Environment Kristie Trousd

ale, Joyce Martin, Laura Abulafia, Claire Barnett, and Carol Westinghouse DOI: 1
0.1352/1934-9556-48.2.135 Since the government action on the removal of lead fro
m gasoline in the 1970s, children’s envi- ronmental health research and policy mea
sures have expanded greatly. Education and outreach campaigns urge parents to en
sure their homes are lead free and to check for the presence of radon, mold, and
other potential environmental hazards. However, children also spend a good port
ion of their days in school environments, with the conditions of many schools be
ing so poor that Lloyd Kolbe, founding and former director of the U.S. Centers f
or Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) Division of Adolescent and School Health
, has referred to them as ‘‘America’s largest unad- dressed children’s health crisis’’ (Hea
thy Schools Network, 2005, p. ii.). According to 2008 National Center for Educat
ion Statistics (NCES) data, there are approximately 132,000 public and private s
chools in the United States, employing over 7 million adults and enrolling 56 mi
llion children (NCES, 2008). Twenty percent of the U.S. population attends eleme
ntary and secondary schools, many of which are very densely occupied (U.S. Envir
on- mental Protection Agency [EPA], 2002). In 2006, a national collaborative rep
ort entitledLessons Learned (Healthy Schools Network, 2006) estimated that 32 mi
llion U.S. children were at risk due solely to school conditions. These conditio
ns include the presence of old and peeling paint, asbestos, mold, poor indoor ai
r quality, and pesticides, as well as possible preexisting on-site or off-site c
ontamination. According to the EPA (2002), one half of U.S. schools have indoor
environmental quality problems. Indoor concentra- tions of pollutants are common
ly three to five times higher than outdoor concentrations due to chem- icals fou
nd in some conventional cleaning prod- ucts, improper cleaning procedures, defec
tive or ineffective climate control (HVAC) systems, interior finishes, exterior
pollutants, personal care products, and renovation projects (EPA, 2002). Contami
nation is portable as well and can be brought inside from outdoor exposures. Spe
cial Needs on the Rise Childhood exposures to environmental toxins have been ass
ociated with various cognitive and behavioral impairments, immune dysfunction, a
d- verse reproductive and developmental effects, cardio-respiratory illnesses, a
nd cancer (Greater Boston Physicians for Social Responsibility [GBPSR], 2000; La
ndrigan, Needleman, & Land- rigan, 2002; Rudant et al., 2007; Salam, Li, Langhol
z, & Gilliland, 2004). One out of every 10 school-aged children, or over 6.7 mil
lion children under 18 years of age, has asthma, and between 1977 and 1994 the n
umber of children in special education increased 191% (Akinbami, 2006; American
Lung Assocation, 2009; GBPSR, 2000). The prevalence of diagnosed learning disabi
lities, autism spectrum disorders, and atten- tion deficit hyperactivity disorde
r in children has increased dramatically nationwide (GBPSR, 2000). Environmental
contaminants, especially those that affect indoor air quality, have also been l
inked to increased allergies and sensitivities, rashes, head- aches, and other s
ymptoms, often referred to assick building syndrome(EPA, 2008). Environmental to
xic exposures have also been linked with decreased IQ. One study reported that,
on average, a 1-mg/dL increase in blood lead results in a decrease of 0.46 IQ po
ints (Canfield et al., 2003). This rate of decline in intellectual func- tioning
appears even greater (1.37 IQ points lost per 1-mg/dL increase in blood lead) a
mong children with blood lead levels below, rather than above, the CDC recommend
ed level of 10mg/dL (Canfield et al., 2003). Taking into account this increased
effect INTELLECTUAL AND DEVELOPMENTAL DISABILITIES VOLUME48, NUMBER2: 135–144| APR
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