The creation of a tool to aid in health material selection for interior designers

Abstract

There has been an increasing number of humans diagnosed with medical conditions such as asthma, obesity, depression, and attention disorders and many of these conditions can be attributed to exposure to materials installed in interior environments that contain ingredients harmful to humans. Despite designers having general knowledge about a products dangerous tendencies, these products are still being specified in projects such as hospitals, schools, and offices. These spaces are often intended to help humans heal, while the materials that surround them are making them sick. After initially focusing my studies on biophilic design, I began to focus on the materials being used in interior spaces before continuing onto nature-based design. These spaces cannot be biophilic if they contain copious amounts of chemicals to achieve the biophilic “aesthetic”. I plan to investigate interior materials further to understand their core ingredients and what effects they have, as well as find suitable replacements for them.M.S., Design Research -- Drexel University, 201