There is a growing body of research that suggests that exposure to electric & electromagnetic fields especially from high voltage sources may be detrimental to health.

Electric fields are produced wherever and whenever there is a flow of voltage. This occurs through any electric cable or appliance even when it is switched off.

Electromagnetic fields are only present where current is flowing and the appliance is switched on. It is electromagnetic field pollution (EMF’s) that is of most concern. EMF’s have been linked with many health concerns, including, immune system disorders, cancers, leukaemia, depression & allergies.

Distance is the easiest way to avoid these fields, but where this is not possible, electrical cables can be shielded with metal trunking to prevent electric fields. Electro-magnetic fields are more difficult to combat requiring clever well design electrical wiring – radial rather than ring wiring being one potentially effective approach.

Clever design (for example, keep electrical cables as far as possible from the sleeping, seating areas etc. ) combined with protective measures can be incorporated into a build to minimise the potential harmful effects of electromagnetic field pollution.

The field of psychology recognises the affect that colour has upon us, not merely as a matter of subjectively favouring certain colours, but in terms of our base characteristics & responses.

…Dr Ashley felt that colo(u)r has a great deal to do with the well-being of the emotionally disturbed.

Nurse Diesel, High Anxiety, Directed by Mel Brooks 1977.

Instinctively, we are programmed to respond to colour in certain ways. Grey is associated with the descent into winter and associated hardship, green with fertility and plenty, blue with the cooling, powerful waters…

Of course these associations are not as simple and linear as I suggest here. They are complex, multi-faceted and adjusted by personal, geographical and spiritual experience.

Mighty forces that need to be handled carefully & with sensitivity – colour should be treated as a central design concern the building of our healthy house.

We bought the barn with planning permission in place. The plans were very simple and low impact. The structure of the building remained unchanged, utilising existing windows and doors, with the simple addition of some small velux windows in the roof.

When we came to readdress the plans with our designer, the opportunity presented itself to add some windows to the currently blind south facing gable end. We submitted an amendment to the existing planning to add a central window to the first floor bedroom to provide a fire exit (happily with fine views over the hills) and two similar diametrically positioned windows on the ground floor. The additional windows would be in-keeping with the vernacular agricultural architecture, which incorporates first floor hay-loft doors and ground floor ventilation slits, which these new openings would mimic.

Happily the amendment to the planning has been agreed and the light levels in the converted building hopefully raised.

A case of building regulations helping us out and presenting the opportunity to make the building safer, lighter and generally more people friendly.

An allergy is a hypersensitivity to what are normally innocuous entities such as certain foodstuffs, cleaning products, dust, plant pollen and so on. Whilst debate over the scale, change in scale and root causes of people suffering from allergies is beyond the scope of this article, consideration of how to minimise the impact of allergens on the inhabitants a healthy house is. So, what steps can we take in the design and construction of our buildings to minimise the risk from allergens?

For a start, we can consider the minimisation of those factors that we have already considered under Air Quality.

Minimise dust. Use timber and tiled flooring, use closed storage rather than open storage.

Be aware of the seasons. Keep the house well ventilated and be aware of the pollen seasons and minimise the exposure of those who suffer with hay fever during them. Pollen levels are at their worst in the early morning and evening during pollen season so try to keep windows closed at these times.

Ventilation. To ensure minimal mould growth, keep the house well ventilated and manage humidity levels. Where mould grows, try to use vinegar or lemon juice based cleaning agents rather than chemical ones. In modern well insulated homes, the ability to ventilate properly is a major design consideration.

Pets. Minimise the potential impact of pets by grooming them regularly outdoors, keeping them and their bedding clean and minimising their contact with soft furnishings and carpets to which hairs and associated allergens may cling.

Through apropriate selection of the materials used in the construction and maintenance of our buildings and informed housekeeping practices we are able to minimise and to some degree manage the allergens within our home environment.

Until I started researching the Healthy House concept, I’d always taken such things as the need for a radon survey with a pinch of salt; as a necessary evil, a piece of unavoidable paid-for bureaucracy.

Now I have a slightly differing opinion after developing an appreciation of the risks that radon presents.

So when my British Geological Survey ‘Radon Protective Measures Standard Report‘ tells me that I need to take BASIC protective measures, I’m taking it seriously.

I believe that level of protection can be afforded through installation of an appropriate barrier layer integral to the damp proof membrane — I’ll certainly be double checking that.

UPDATE – Yes, in most cases outside of those areas where high levels of radon are a concern (Devon and Cornwall suffer some of the highest levels in the UK), you just need to make sure that you install the correct type of damp proof membrane.