By Nicolas Bécuwe What the Health, november 29, 2018
Air freshening products are everywhere, in our offices, hotels, washrooms, cars and homes, because of their utility of hiding bad smells. Air fresheners have many benefits both for consumers and business owners. According to Mr Paul Wonnacott, a former member of the Council of Economic Advisers (CEO), “The appropriate background scent in a store can subtly trigger consumers to spend more time in there or persuade them to stop in”. But is it always a good thing? 1 American out of 3 claims to have experienced health problems when exposed to fragranced products such as air fresheners. So we investigate on air fresheners and their potential effects on our health.
When we look at the components of air fresheners we can see that it may contains any number of dangerous chemicals.
Such as formaldehyde, a colorless, flammable, strong-smelling chemical commonly used as an industrial fungicide, germicide, and disinfectant, and as a preservative in mortuaries and medical laboratories. Formaldehyde also occurs naturally in the environment. It is produced in small amounts by most living organisms as part of normal metabolic processes. Some individuals may experience adverse effects such as watery eyes; burning sensations in the eyes, nose, and throat; coughing; wheezing; nausea; and skin irritation due to the presence of this chemical. Laboratory studies showed that exposure to formaldehyde could cause nasal cancer in rats and could also cause cancer in humans according to The National Cancer Institute (NCI). And recently The International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) classifies formaldehyde as a human carcinogen.
It may contain petroleum distillates a flammable, colorless liquid. That causes irritation of eyes, skin, nose and throat; dizziness; drowsiness; headache; nausea and chemical pneumonitis according to The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH).
Research found that no air fresheners were made without these toxic components, so nowadays, the safest way to avoid bad smells is to open windows to bring fresh air or to use fans to maintain air circulation.
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