Open fires ‘bad’ for asthma

Open fires can cause breathing difficulties for people with asthma and respiratory problems, according to the Irish Asthma Society. The comments come after it emerged the most recent building regulations actively discourage homeowners from installing open fireplaces.

Instead, the Department of Environment wants housebuilders to install sealed stoves as they are a more efficient way of heating a home. The Asthma Society is to begin baseline research into indoor air quality in Irish homes as it believes that awareness needs to grow of how particles from solid fuel fires are exacerbating respiratory difficulties.

There are 470,000 people with asthma in Ireland. One in five children has asthma while one in 10 adults are sufferers.