How your scented candle could KILL you: Perfume 'can release dangerous
cocktails of cancerous chemicals'
With our doors and windows firmly
shut against the winter cold, lighting a few scented candles is a trick many
use freshen up a stuffy room.And with enticing aromas such as cotton fresh,
mystic Orient, pine forest and spring meadow it is easy to see the allure.
But this act could be turning your home into a death trap as
perfume chemicals can cause a dangerous cocktail that can kill, according to
scientists.Experts say the simple perfumes can mutate on contact with air and
if rooms are not properly ventilated they can build up to dangerous levels.
Tests were carried out on six similar modern houses over the
course of five days by Professor Alastair Lewis of the National Centre for
Atmospheric Science at the University of York. Firstly he measured the levels
of a range of ‘volatile organic chemicals’ (VOCs) and found a series of substances
in the air, including benzene, which comes from outdoor vehicle pollution, and
alpha-pinene, a pine perfume
.
Used in many cleaning products. But the stand-out chemical was limonene, which is released
by fragranced candles, plug-ins, air fresheners and cleaning products. Limonene
is commonly used to give a citrus smell to scented candles and cleaning
products and is considered so safe it is also used as a flavoring in foods.
However, once sprayed into our homes it doesn’t stay as
limonene as it reacts with other gases which occur naturally in the air to
create something else.
Back in the laboratory, Professor Lewis analyzed its reactivity,
and discovered that on exposure to ozone - which is present in the air all
around us - every two molecules of limonene could produce one molecule of
another chemical, formaldehyde.
Formaldehyde is used in embalming and heavy industry. It is
a known cause of cancer in humans and in high levels can seriously affect
health.It is most closely linked with cancers of the nose and throat, and at
the very least, it can cause sore throats, coughs, scratchy eyes and
nosebleeds.
Chemicals in air fresheners include include petroleum
products and such as p-dichlorobenzene, which hardly evokes spring meadows or
sultry spices.But help is at hand for all those who can’t resist a scented
candle or plug-in air freshener in the shape of the humble houseplant.
For experts found there is a small group of
pollution-busting houseplants which absorb particular chemicals, including
formaldehyde.As part of the research, each house in the study took in four
specially chosen houseplants for six weeks, while Professor Lewis continued to
record the levels of both limonene and formaldehyde.
Over those four weeks, the levels of limonene in the air did
not go down but scientists found the levels of formaldehyde dropped markedly.
The experts say the research suggests that some houseplants
– particularly English Ivy (Hedera helix), geraniums, lavender and many ferns –
were good at absorbing formaldehyde.
In the UK we spend nearly £400 million a year on buying a
total of 225 million aerosols, plug-ins, gels, candles and incense sticks, to
scent our homes.
The findings from the pioneering research project, which was
aided by a team of experts from the BBC, were aired on Trust Me, I’m A Doctor,
last Wednesday.
Last month doctor warned that E-cigarettes may be no safer
than smoking tobacco because the process of vaporisation in the device can
produce formaldehyde and other cancer-causing chemicals.
Experts said more research is urgently needed after
scientific tests on the devices produced ‘alarming’ results’ suggesting cell
damage by the process could lead to an ‘inevitable progression’ towards the
disease, the journal Oral Oncology reported.
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