Milford chronicle., 1929-06-21
WARN AGAINST FADS
IN AIRING BEDROOMS
Public Health Experts Say Opening
OF Windows Can Be Carried
Too Far.

of ventilation throw sidelights OF
the ventilation of sleeping room
and tend to modify to a considerable
extent previous opinions and prac
tees. The United States Public
Health Service corrects some O
these old opinions in a broadcas
on Common Sense and the Opel
Window" 1t warns against fads il
ventilation and says that even fresl
air can be carried to extreme il
some cases.
LESS than generation ago w,
heard a great deal about fresh ali
and foul air" says the service. "Al
outdoor air was labeled fresh fol
want of better term, and air in
doors was supposed to be foul.
These terms are fast disappearing
from our literature. Investigators
in various countries have showr
conclusively that the bad effects il
a poorly ventilated room, the head
aches and general feelings of dis
comfort, are not due to some myth
cal substance in the air that rend-
ers it foul, but to an excessive tenn
perature, high humidity, or a COM
bination of the two.
RFurthermore, we have learned
that the air from out of doors is
not always more desirable than the
air indoors. This is particularly
true in certain localities where the
outdoor air is constantly contami-
mated, particularly during the win
ter months, with smoke, fog and
dust from VariOus sources
Suppose you have a north room
provided with an ordinary wooden
sash double-hung window without
weather strips or storm window.
The weather is cold; jack frost
flirting with the zero mark on the
thermometer, and moderate wind,
say ten miles per hour comes from
the north. The leakage of air into
the room between the sash and case
ment and between the upper and
lower windows would be, under
these conditions, about sixty cubic
feet per minute with the window
closed. Now, an ordinary adult re-
quires for respiration about one
third of cubic foot of air per min
ute. So, for purposes of respiration
the leakage around a closed window
will supply him with about 1SO
times the amount of air necessary.
"But to promote circulation OF air
in the room, and to ventilate IN
satisfactory manner, hygienists have
set a standard of from twenty-five
to thirty cubic feet of air per minute
for each person. This is a very lib
eral allowance. With leakage or
sixty cubic feet per minute around
closed window under the conditions
mentioned, we still have twice the
, amount of air required to ventilate
Ehe room when occupied by one per-
son, or an ample supply for Two
persons.
'sLet it be clearly understood, how
everN that it is not advocated as
general, proposition that persons
sleep with the windows closed. we
are only pointing out that IN colo
weather there. is no necessity ior
opening the windows to any consld-
erable extent under the false impress
sion that this practice, is necessarily
desirable or healthful. BY all MEANS
sleep with the window open. open
If wiwde when the weather permlts:
Rut do not make a fetish or 1ad
Of omen window ventilation. Do not
hoast to your friends that your WIN
dow is always wide open lrrespec-
tive of weather conditions. Ihls
practice does not indicate the best
of Judgment on your part. Direct
drafts. particularly when one Is
sIeeping. are productive Of COLDS
and tend to increase rather than de-
crease our death rate during the
winter season from influenza anu
other respiratory diseases.
"Therei is much the medical pro
fessiop~ Goes not know about colus'
huh snere is evidence that a simple
cofd is a local infection of the mem
brane lining the nose or throat.
. Ouick changes in temperature, un-
Aomfortable drafts or chilling OF the
DIV unset or disturb the control OF
sd flow to these parts and favor
IS snread of infection. In this way
mple cold becomes severe as the
acted area increases. II the IN
tion inyades the finer structure
Ez the lungs pneumonia may be the
suit. ..,.
DID crest in bed and comfortable,
Ev zen temperature are the best ways
Nd treat a cold and prevent serious
81 ZomDlications. Use common sense
IN opening your window. Young
#aduIts who are strong and robust
may profit by the practice. Thls,
however, is not necessarily so Oh
children, Of the aged and OF many
of all ages who are not particularly
rugged or are susceptible to colds
and drafts. And we strongly sus-
meet that even the robust sometimes
enioy good health in spite or tne
xvide-open window in cold Weather
rather than because of it.
"Be comfortable with the wlnoo"
men. Physical comfort should IN
variably be your rule governing
sIeeping-room ventilation. II you
S1een better and awaken refreshed
with the window open a fractlon ol
an inch, that is the best conolClon
fer, your individual requirements; II
YOU sleep better with the WINDOW
wide oDen and the chilling drafts
are pleasant rather than disagree
able. by all means open your WIN
dow wide. But do not throw open
vour window in cold, inclement
weather and retire with chatterlng
teeth and sleep with blue nose ana
General discomfort under the mis-
taken idea that it is healthful.
"a person may sleep in cold ana
windy weather with the WINDOW
CLOSED without the slightest fear OF
had results from a deficient air sup
NV. Leakage about and between
the sash will supply sufhclent an