VENTILATION & AIR MOVEMENT


Inadequate bedroom ventilation can disturb sleep quality, necessitating a revisit on residential building standards


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Exploring the effect of bedroom


ventilation on sleep quality


A recent international study found that the currently prescribed minimum ventilation rates for residential buildings, and especially bedrooms, may be too low and result in disturbed sleep. Therefore, the recommendation is to revisit the relevant residential building standards so that the ventilation rate with outdoor air can keep CO2 produced by sleeping occupants at least below 1,000 ppm, or preferably below 800 ppm


G


ood sleep is key to good health, overall well-being, and optimal cognitive function. Disturbed sleep or lack of sleep can lead


to various health issues such as cardiovascular diseases, cancer, and other morbidity, including Alzheimer’s disease and obesity. Therefore, it is necessary to ensure that environmental factors that affect sleep quality, including temperature, noise, light, and air quality, are maintained optimally in the bedroom. Recent studies have consistently shown that inadequate bedroom ventilation can disturb sleep quality. Using these studies, it is possible to revisit the existing ventilation recommendations in bedrooms in a more comprehensive way. Building on these foundations, in an innovative


study, a research team led by Mizuho Akimoto, a research associate at the Advanced Collaborative Research Organization for Smart Society (ACROSS), Waseda University, Japan, together with Professor Shin-ichi Tanabe from the Department of Architecture, Waseda University; Prof Pawel Wargocki from the Department of Environmental and Resource Engineering, Technical University of Denmark; and Prof Li Lan from Shanghai Jiao Tong University, recently conducted a novel analysis as part of a project sponsored by ASHRAE (1837-RP); The overall aim was to provide input to ventilation standards in bedrooms to ensure that sleep quality is not disturbed by poor bedroom air quality. Their novel findings were published in the journal Science and Technology for the Built Environment


22 January 2026 Ms Akimoto said: “The present study not only


incorporates a more representative body of evidence but also introduces several novel perspectives. It provides a multidimensional evaluation of how ventilation influences various sleep parameters, distinguishes between intervention and cross- sectional studies, and considers population-specific carbon dioxide (CO2) emission rates during sleep.” The team reviewed 17 studies, including 22


experimental datasets, to determine that the lowest ventilation with outdoor air causing disturbed sleep is when the (absolute) CO2 concentration reaches 1,000 ppm. They observed that the highest CO2 concentration not causing any effect on sleep was 850 ppm at the lowest ventilation rate, but this cannot be regarded as a No Observed Adverse Effect Level due to sensor accuracy and safety margins. Therefore, the researchers proposed the lowest ventilation with outdoor air in bedrooms to keep CO2 at or below 800 ppm; this is the target on which bedroom ventilation should be based.


CO2 in all these recommendations acts as a proxy indicator of ventilation rate, rather than a pollutant. To maintain the recommended target levels of CO2, bedroom ventilation rates would need to be about 8 L/s per person, indicating at least twice the amount prescribed in many current residential standards. “Our findings suggest that currently prescribed minimum ventilation rates for residences may provide inadequate ventilation for bedrooms and may thus lead to impaired sleep. By identifying target CO2 of 800–1,000 ppm to determine ventilation, the review provides evidence that can support reconsideration of ventilation requirements in building codes. This has implications for the housing industry and ventilation system manufacturers, who face the challenge of balancing energy efficiency with human health. We also propose methods to achieve these levels, though further development is needed,” says Ms Akimoto. The findings have potential implications for


revising the residential building standards in terms of ventilation in bedrooms. However, when properly ventilating bedrooms with sufficient outdoor air, energy usage should be minimised. It is believed that this recommendation will lead to improved sleep quality and holistically enhance the quality of life. Taken together, the present contributions offer


a more robust and nuanced understanding of how bedroom ventilation affects sleep health and provide information relevant for future ventilation guidelines.


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Photo:: Ms Mizuho Akimoto from Waseda University, Japan


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