FOOD INTOLERANCE NETWORK FACTSHEET
Fumes & Perfumes
Exposure to fumes and
perfumes can affect food sensitive people in a variety of ways including
headaches, lethargy, forgetfulness, respiratory problems, asthma and behaviour
problems in children. Some chemicals act as sensitisers, that is, exposure can
make you more sensitive to other chemicals. You can't avoid all chemicals, but
you can reduce your total load. If this information seems overwhelming, go
slowly. Get your food sorted out first.
Indoor air
When you think air
pollution, do you think smokestacks and traffic? Think again. Invisible
chemicals in our homes or offices mean our exposure to toxic pollutants can be
up to 50 times higher inside than it is outdoors.
Ironically, investigation
of indoor air quality was started by the tobacco industry, hoping to divert
attention from the dangers of passive smoking. For the last twenty years,
experts have been finding out about the effects of invisible chemicals called
volatile organic compounds (VOCs). Found inside buildings, VOCs are associated
with sick building syndrome - a range of symptoms which include eye, skin and
throat irritation, headaches, lethargy, dizziness and nausea - and are known to
aggravate asthma.
Thousands of different VOCs
have been identified. Carpets, floor tiles, solvents, paints, varnishes, new
furniture, glues and wall coverings all emit a complex mixture of organic
compounds.
Workplace air
Formaldehyde is one of the
most common VOCs. In buildings, it is used in pressed wood products,
particleboard and plywood, foam, plastics and insulation. A West Australian
study found concentrations of formaldehyde in office buildings were within safe
levels, but temporary classrooms - which typically make extensive use of
customwood - were more than 25 times the level of the safety standard. Testing
the belief that the effects of VOCs can be overcome by the use of indoor
plants, researchers found you'd need an indoor rainforest to reduce
formaldehyde levels even a little.
Workplace
air: what you can do:
everyone is entitled to a safe workplace under the Work Health Act. If your
workplace makes you sick, there are standards to protect you. More information
from Total Information Centre at www.tec.nccnsw.org.au .
From a medical journal
Following severe complaints
about air quality in an office building in
Homes
Sick building syndrome
isn't confined to offices. New houses can be a major problem. Homes less than
one year old in a
'But it only took them two
days to put the kitchen in,' said one woman whose son suffered headaches and
lethargy for months after the installation of a new kitchen. VOCs in wood,
glues, solvents and paints used in houses and house renovations can gas off for
years but are particularly high in the first six months. Some people are more
sensitive to the effects than others.
Homes
- what you can do: avoid
new homes and home renovations. Choose non-toxic paints and materials, for
example, Berger Breathe Easy range, Daisy Paints from WA, Bio Paints
(Bridgewater, South Australia, phone 1800 809 448) and www.checnet.org . If you have to renovate,
ventilate. Keep windows open.
Cars
New cars can be even more
of a health hazard. An Australian analysis of three new cars found levels of
VOCs nearly 130 times as high as the recommended Australian exposure limit. The
high levels lasted for up to six months.
Cars
- what you can do: buy
a car which is already six months old. If you buy a brand new car, ventilate. Leave
the car parked with the doors and windows open in the sun whenever possible
during the first six months, and leave the windows open when driving. Remember,
some people and especially children react to the fumes of petrol at filling
stations.
Carpets
Carpets are the biggest
source of dust in a house. A house with hard floors and a few rugs will have
about one-tenth the dust of the same house with wall-to-wall carpets. As well
as dust mites, moulds, pet hair, and cigarette smoke, carpets are a reservoir
for VOCs from cleaning products, solvents, deodorisers and air fresheners,
heavy metals like lead and cadmium, and pesticides. Toxic chemicals used in the
manufacture of new carpets and some vinyls include tributilin (particularly
high in dust-mite treated carpets), permethrin, brominated flame retardants,
and phthalates.
From a medical journal
A mobile unit for
environmental quality testing in
Carpets
- what you can do: avoid
carpets. Choose ceramic tiles or wooden floors with nontoxic varnishes. If you
are stuck with old carpets, start a clean up program: put in a high quality
doormat, take your shoes off and leave them at the door, use a power-head
vacuum cleaner and vacuum twice a week, for three weeks, make 25 passes a week
over the carpet within a metre of the front door, 16 passes over the areas
which receive a lot of foot traffic and 8 passes over the rest. After that,
halve the passes. If you are an asthmatic, leave the house while someone else
vacuums for you. Do not have your carpet or lounge cleaned with
commercial carpet shampoo.
Furnishings
Regard any new furnishings
with suspicion. Furniture made from particleboard can emit the same VOCs as
buildings. A stereo system with speakers can contain many glues and solvents.
New mattresses and children's waterproof mattress covers have been found to
emit chemicals which will affect the chemically sensitive. Likewise, new
computers. Permanent press drapes, sheets and even clothes contain
formaldehyde.
Furnishings
- what you can do:
buy good used furniture or leave items like stereos and computers outside to
gas off for a while. When buying a new mattress, explain your concerns. Request
a non-smelly mattress. Some new mattresses are much worse than others. Ask
staff to remove the plastic covering and leave the mattress to gas off for a
few days at the warehouse before it is delivered. Keep windows open at first.
Avoid permanent-press, moth proof or wrinkle free sheets, clothes and drapes.
See also Factsheet on Toxic furniture - effects of flame retardants.
- A nine year old boy suffered from snoring and sleep
apnea. An elimination diet revealed that a few food additives were
responsible - sunset yellow (110), the bread preservative (282) and MSG
(621). When he later developed the problem while avoiding his food
triggers, a new mattress turned out to be the cause.
- A woman with long term painful eczema especially on her
face found her condition settled on the elimination diet - but always
worsened on the weekend. Eventually she realised the eczema was aggravated
when she sat on her sofa which had been commercially cleaned. Months later
the carpet was cleaned in her office at work and her eczema flared up
again, necessitating a long period of sick leave.
Personal products and
fragrances
At first, researchers
thought VOCs were only associated with building materials. Then they realised
that buildings full of people had twice the level of VOCs. Freshly dry-cleaned
clothes emit trichloroethane, the solvent used by dry-cleaners. Nail polish and
even the plastic liners on disposable nappies have been found to emit chemicals
which can affect sensitive people. There are chemical residues of shampoos and
soaps. Pleasant smelling chemicals in air-fresheners, deodorants and fabric
conditioners include volatile chemicals like limonene, pinene, terpinene and
camphor. Some perfumes contain hundreds of different VOCs. Fragrance
sensitivity has been suggested as an occupational hazard, especially among
health workers, metal workers and food handlers. For example, exposure to
scented gravel in cat litter boxes has been implicated in occupational asthma.
Women are more likely to be affected than men.
Personal
products - what you can do: avoid drycleaning. Avoid air fresheners. Avoid aerosol deodorants.
Avoid ironing sprays and fabric conditioners. Buy cloth nappies instead of
disposables. Avoid perfumes. In the
From a medical journal
For unknown reasons, a
patient at a medical clinic sprayed perfume in a medical assistant's face at
close range. The assistant had no history or family history of allergies or
asthma other than pollen-induced hayfever. She suffered an immediate
anaphylactic reaction and was admitted to hospital where she recovered. For
months afterwards the assistant needed daily bronchodilator medication for
persistent shortness of breath and has developed a persistent sensitivity to
perfumes. The patient was arrested and charged with assault. Lessenger JE
Occupational acute anaphylactic reaction to assault by perfume spray in the
face J American Board of Family Practitioners 2001;14:137-40
Household cleaners
There are approximately
70,000 chemicals registered for use as cleaning products. Formaldehyde is just
one example. It is a common ingredient in disinfectants, furniture polishes and
water softeners. Some other known toxic chemicals in household products include
methanol, ammonia, chlorine, butyl cellosolve, cresol, glycols, hydrochloric
and phosphoric acids, naphthalene, PDCBs, perchloroethylene, phenols and TCE (tricholoethylene).
Propellants like propane and butane are irritating to the lungs. The average
American household has 45 aerosol cans. Washing powders and pre-soakers with
enzymes are a well-known cause of adverse reactions including occupational
asthma.
Household
cleaners - what you can do: wash windows with water, remove most of the water with a squeegee and
then polish to a shine with a soft clean cloth. No need for toxic window
cleaner. You can do most household cleaning with soda bicarbonate, vinegar,
dishwashing liquid and dishwashing detergent. Soaking clothes overnight in pure
soap flakes will get them just as clean as more toxic detergents. More
information: Clean House, Clean Planet, or www.checnet.org Remember, some children react to
chlorine in swimming pools during swimming lesons.
Pesticides
Chlorpyrifos used to be
most commonly used pesticide in the
'Public health is not
protected when the urine of virtually every child in this country contains
residues of these [neurotoxic] chemicals.' - from In Harm's Way: Toxic
threats to child development a report by Greater Boston Physicians for
Social Responsibility available at: www.igc.org/psr
Children are are more
vulnerable to the effects of chemicals because, weight for weight, they
breathe, drink and eat more, with a consequently higher update of potentially
toxic substances. It is estimated that there are more than 15,000 neurotoxic
synthetic chemicals, almost all developed in the last 50 years.
In
The average
Young children are also
most at risk for exposure to pesticides in foods because they have a
proportionally high intake of fruit and in their diet. Fresh fruit and
vegetables, especially apple juice and apples, were the foods which contained
the highest levels of pesticides in a survey of residues in children's diets.
Pesticides:
what you can do:
Wash
your hands frequently. Studies show that many synthetic chemicals vaporise and
then settle on indoor surfaces - counters, tables, clothes, furniture, toys -
where they can be readily picked up by those who touch them. Develop the habit
of handwashing in children.
Never
assume a pesticide is safe. Anything designed to disrupt living organisms -
plant or animal - may also prove harmful to humans in unexpected ways.
Limit
uses and exposure. Spraying for pests should never be done routinely or
as a first option. With integrated pest management (IPM), pests are monitored
and controlled by less toxic means. Use toxic chemicals only used as a last
resort. Use barriers - block up crevices - to deny pests entry to houses.
Insects
and rodents: fly
swats, mouse traps, sticky fly paper and flyscreens are mechanical means to
deal with insects and rodents.
Mosquitoes: use screens, wear protective
clothing and stay indoors at dusk.
Cockroaches: seal crevices, clean up foods scraps
thoroughly and store food in pest-proof containers, use sticky baits - not
baits with chlorpyrifos. You can use an insect growth retardant on cupboard
hinges.
Fleas: wash bedding frequently. Here are
two natural anti-flea suggestions from the internet. Slice up two lemons and
pour nearly boiling water over them, then soak overnight. The next day, strain
the liquid and pour into a spray bottle. Spray the dogs liberally and then
massage the solution into their coats. If you are sensitive to inhaled salicylates,
use this alternative: wash dog with low-fragrance shampoo and soap up
liberally, leave suds for 8 minutes then rinse off - this is supposed to kill
fleas.
Headlice: this method worked for us when my
kids were little. It combines the drown-the-pests principle with the known
toxicity of soap plus mechanical removal by combing. Shampoo with your regular
shampoo, rinse, shampoo again and leave with a towel around your child's head
for twenty minutes, then rinse. Apply your regular conditioner and comb well
with a white nit comb so you can see what you catch. Swim or wet hair in the
shower, condition and comb nearly every day for two weeks or until you stop
catching anything. Wash bedding and towels in hot water or dry in dryer.
Garden
pests: use Tom Ogren's
recipe for homemade insecticides by mixing three teaspoons of liquid soap,
three teaspoons vegetable oil and four litres of warm water. Add a few drops of
hot pepper sauce if you have warm-blooded pests like rabbits. www.allergyfreegardening.com
Weeds: follow this recommendation from
the US Department of Agriculture. Fill a spray bottle with household vinegar
and spray weeds, preferably on a sunny day.
Food: peel all fruits and vegetables
thickly or buy organic. Limit fruit juice or buy organic. Filtered water is the
best drink.
More
information: visit
the entertaining virtual house at the Children's Health and Environment
Coalition website. You can click on each item for articles and nontoxic alternatives,
www.checnet.org
From a medical Journal
Pyrethrin insecticides (eg
permethrin) are an extract of the crysanthemum flower and are considered to be
much safer than organophosphates like chlorpyrifos (Dursban). However,
pyrethrins are known to trigger asthma attacks. This paper reports the case of
a 37 year old woman with a 10 year history of mild asthma, no allergies, no
family history of asthma or allergies, no asthma exacerbations for nearly three
years, and no medications. The woman developed severe shortness of breath a few
minutes after beginning to wash her dog for the first time with a pyrethrin
shampoo. Seconds later she developed gasping respiration, collapsed and could
not be revived. Wax PM and Hoffman RS Fatality associated with inhalation of
a pyrethrin shampoo. Clinical toxicology 1994 32(4), 457-460.
References
Edwards, R. 'When a new
house is positively sickening' New Scientist
Newswire, 'Sick Auto
Syndrome', New Scientist
Renner, R. 'Curse this
house', New Scientist
Immig, J. 'The Toxic
Playground', Total Environment Centre, 2000. www.tec.nccnsw.org.au.
Children's Health and
Environment Coalition website: www.checnet.org
Pappas GP and others, The
respiratory effects of volatile organic compounds. Int J Occup Environ Health
2000;6(1):1-8.
Colborn T and others, Our
Stolen Future, Abacus, 1996, www.ourstolenfuture.org
Anderson, R and Anderson J.
Sensory Irritation and multiple chemical sensitivity, Toxicology and Industrial
Health 1999;15:339-345. See abstract below.
Many of the symptoms
described in Sick Building Syndrome (SBS) and multiple chemical sensitivity
(MCS) resemble the symptoms known to be elicited by airborne irritant
chemicals. Irritation of the eye, nose, and throat is common to SBS, MCS, and
sensory irritation (SI). Difficulty of breathing is often seen with SBS, MCS,
and pulmonary irritation (PI). We therefore asked the question: can indoor air
pollutants cause SI and/or PI? In laboratory testing in which mice breathed the
dilute volatile emissions of air fresheners, fabric softeners, colognes, and
mattresses for 1 h, we measured various combinations of SI and PI as well as
airflow decreases (analogous to asthma attacks). Air samples taken from sites
associated with repeated human complaints of poor air quality also caused SI,
PI, and airflow limitation (AFL) in the mice. In previous publications, we have
documented numerous behavior changes in mice (which we formally studied with a
functional observational battery) after exposure to product emissions or
complaint site air; neurological complaints are a prominent part of SBS and
MCS. All together, these data suggest that many symptoms of SBS and MCS can be
described as SI, PI, AFL, and neurotoxicity. All these problems can be caused
by airborne irritant chemicals such as those emitted by common commercial
products and found in polluted indoor air. With some chemical mixtures (e.g.,
emissions of some fabric softeners, disposable diapers, and vinyl mattress
covers) but not others (e.g., emissions of a solid air freshener), the SI
response became larger (2- to 4-fold) when we administered a series of two or
three 1-h exposures over a 24-h period. Since with each exposure the intensity
of the stimulus was constant yet the magnitude of the response increased, we
concluded that there was a change in the sensitivity of the mice to these
chemicals. The response was not a generalized stress response because it
occurred with only some mixtures of irritants and not others; it is a specific
response to certain mixtures of airborne chemicals. This is one of the few
times in MCS research that one can actually measure both the intensity of the
stimulus and the magnitude of the response and thus be allowed to discuss
sensitivity changes. The changing SI response of the mice might serve as a
model of how people develop increasing sensitivity to environmental pollutants.
Intensive study of this system should teach us much about how people respond to
and change sensitivity to airborne irritant chemicals.
www.fedupwithfoodadditives.info
The information given is not intended as
medical advice. Always consult with your doctor for underlying illness. Before
beginning dietary investigation, consult a dietician with an interest in food
intolerance. You can find a supportive dietitian through the Dietitians
Association of
© Sue Dengate Update March 2005.
