Studies on the Effects of Cleaning Products to Your Health

Study: Indoor Air Chemistry: Cleaning Agents, Ozone and Toxic Air Contaminants
Published by California Air Resources Board, May 2006

A study by the University of California, Berkeley and Lawrence National Laboratory finds that many common household cleaners and air fresheners emit toxic pollutants at levels that may lead to health risks.

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(http://www.universityofcalifornia.edu/news/article/8197)

Summary

When used indoors under certain conditions, many common household cleaners and air fresheners emit toxic pollutants at levels that may lead to health risks. The study is the first to measure emissions and concentrations of primary and secondary toxic compounds produced by these products under typical indoor use conditions, and it examines the potential hazards of small-scale yet widespread utilization of an array of products designed for household use. The report is an important milestone that highlights the need to investigate potential health effects of ultrafine particles produced in such reactions.

Cancer-specific information:

When the researchers tested cleaning products containing terpene-containing in the presence of ozone, they found that reactions produced very small particles with properties like those found in smog and haze; other oxidation products; and formaldehyde, a respiratory irritant that is classified as a Group 1 carcinogen. (This designation by the International Agency for Cancer Research is reserved for substances for which there is sufficient evidence to conclude that they cause cancer in humans.) The amounts of terpenes that were converted into these pollutants was dependent on the amount of ozone present.