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Maybe your house is what ails you
By Luci Scott
Arizona Business Gazette
January 11, 2003
When doctors can't cure patients, Dan Stih often gets a call.
But Stih doesn't examine the people; instead, he tests their houses and offices.
The environmental inspector often finds that the buildings are to blame for
making his clients sick.
A woman in a rental apartment complained about her runny nose and itchy eyes,
symptoms that Stih says are caused by mold.
"We didn't find mold in the building, but in her humidifier," Stih said.
He helped a family in Cave Creek when he discovered their dog had been digging
near the house and had buried the end of a drain pipe in dirt, making the water
back up and stand in an air-conditioning pan.
"Standing water breeds bacteria, mold, yeast, all kind of nasties," Stih said.
In this case, bacteria was producing endotoxins, which had been sickening the
family members, who had decided to camp outside in a tent.
Another client had been suffering from a rash on his arms and feet for more than
a year despite trips to the doctor. Stih told him to stop spraying for bugs.
Once he did, the rash was gone within six months.
"I get called because people have health problems," Stih said. "Ideally, this
would be a preventative service, but people aren't really using it in that
context."
Besides mold, bacteria and pesticides, add to the list of culprits paint fumes,
building materials, carpeting, furniture, laundry detergents, air fresheners and
tobacco smoke.
He says indoor air pollutants can accumulate and harm immune systems in the way
a rain barrel is filled.
"You add a drop of water, but if you add another drop and another, pretty soon
the barrel overflows."
Symptoms can include allergies, headache, fatigue, muscle cramping, heart
palpitations, depression, poor concentration, frequent colds and an inability to
relax.
Stih has a schedule of fees for various tests; a six- to eight-hour
comprehensive inspection of a home costs $299 plus travel time from Prescott,
where he is based.
He also will check electromagnetic fields.
"We find a lot of wiring errors in people's homes that cause elevated magnetic
fields. There's research, if you choose to believe it or not, that says elevated
fields can cause cancer. Even the scientists who don't agree it causes cancer,
they agree it affects you biologically. Elevated fields can alter your hormones
and your immune system, cause insomnia, contribute to allergies."
Stih got into his profession as a result of searching for solutions to his own
chemical sensitivity.
He was an engineer for Motorola for 10 years when he escaped the Phoenix heat by
moving to Prescott. He soon grew tired of the commute, so he quit Motorola and
became a handyman.
"I had more business than I could handle," he said. But he became sick from the
materials he was working with: paint, caulk, glue, sawdust, fiberglass
insulation, gasoline fumes from cutting railroad ties with a chain saw.
"There's just about nothing you can do in construction that's not toxic," he
said.
He became anemic and fatigued and developed allergies to foods.
"My whole immune system was suppressed. I realized it was these chemicals. I
became hypersensitized to them."
He eventually found non-toxic building materials to use as a handyman.
"I'd try to explain to people why I was using non-toxic materials. Most people
think that's nice, but a lot just want you to do the work and don't care (about
non-toxic)."
He began consulting with people building houses and giving talks about non-toxic
materials to construction students at Yavapai Community College.
When in Scottsdale one day to visit Ec0-Clean, which sells non-toxic products,
he saw a flier about the International Institute for Bau-Biologie and Ecology in
Clearwater, Fla. The institute specializes in how buildings affect the health
and safety of its occupants. It offers classes in Clearwater and via
correspondence and the Web.
"I went through the whole shebang," Stih said. He studied with the institute for
a year and went to Clearwater three times, staying seven days and studying 12
hours a day each trip.
"There are a lot of certifications for indoor air quality, but the Bau-Biologie
Institute has one of the most intensive courses available," he said. "They
really cover it all." |
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