Are air fresheners safe to breathe?

Are air fresheners safe to breathe?

Briefly inhaling a small amount of a spray air freshener might cause some coughing, choking, or difficulty catching the breath. These effects should get better quickly with fresh air. Swallowing air freshener can cause toxicity ranging from minor irritation of the mouth to life-threatening effects.

Are scents bad for your lungs?

Chemicals used to add scents to products can cause serious health problems for some people, especially for people with lung diseases such as asthma or COPD . Being near a scented product can make some people sick. Scents enter our bodies through our skin and our lungs.

Can scented candles cause respiratory problems?

Commonly emitted VOCs related to the scent in candles include formaldehyde, petroleum distillates, limonene, alcohol and esters. These harmful chemicals can cause health problems ranging from headaches, dizziness and allergy symptoms to asthma attacks, respiratory tract infections and even cancer.

Why you should not use air fresheners?

Even so-called green and organic air fresheners can emit hazardous air pollutants. ... From a health perspective, air fresheners have been associated with adverse effects, such as migraine headaches, asthma attacks, mucosal symptoms, infant illness, and breathing difficulties.

Are there any health problems from air fresheners?

They may smell sweet, but popular air fresheners can cause serious lung problems. That’s the message from a new study presented over the weekend at the annual meeting of the American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology (ACAAI).

What kind of chemicals are in air fresheners?

Human population studies at the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS), a part of the National Institutes of Health, found that exposure to a volatile organic compound (VOC), called 1,4 dichlorobenzene (1,4 DCB) may cause modest reductions in lung function.

Is it safe to drink spray air freshener?

Swallowing spray air freshener can cause similar effects as the liquid types, but they are not typically swallowed in large amounts because it is difficult get a large quantity from a spray nozzle. Of all the formulations, the evaporating beads and reed diffuser solutions have the greatest risk of serious toxicity when swallowed by children.

Can a person with COPD use an air freshener?

For people with seasonal allergies, chronic asthma, COPD, or a common cold, air freshener is a definite no-no, says Janna Tuck, M.D., a practicing allergist in Cape Girardeau, MO, and a spokesperson for the American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology.