Pressure and Tall Buildings Does living in tall buildings somehow exert more pressure on our bodies? I remember reading something about this once but I'm not sure if its true.
 A: Tall buildings are subject to the stack effect. Because the interior is held at a different temperature than outside (due to indoors temperature control), the vertical pressure gradient is different. Typically it is a reasonable assumption that the pressure inside the building is continuous from one floor to the next via the stairwell (if nothing else). Typically, it is also a reasonable assumption the the ground floor is the closest to maintaining equilibrium with the outdoor pressure because people obviously walk in and out.
The result of the higher indoor temperature is the that it loses less pressure with increasing altitude than the cold outdoor air. That means that the top floors of the building have a higher air pressure than the air outside the windows. If a window is opened, a large amount of air will flow. If allowed to continue, this will continue as a pump, moving air up the building from the bottom and out the top. This is natural circulation, and is powered by the heat input to the building air temperature control. The people who pay the utility bills will desire to minimize the flow as much as possible.
However, going back to the assumption of equalized pressure on the ground floor, you are not at all at a higher pressure inside the building than before you entered. The pressure is lower the higher up you are. In fact, pressure might have a small drop as you go through the door itself since natural circulation is trying to suck air up.
