[国外] Air freshener chemical concerns revived

A long-running controversy over the safety of scented household products has flared up once again, with the publication of a US study finding that a range of air fresheners and scented laundry products emit hazardous compounds not mentioned on their labels.
Anne Steinemann, of the University of Washington in Seattle, says several of the 100 volatile organic compounds (VOCs) released by the products she examined are classified as toxic or hazardous by US federal law.  They include ethanol, ethyl acetate, benzaldehyde and acetone. Three compounds that were detected, acetaldehyde, 1,4-dioxane and chloromethane, are classified in the US as 'hazardous air pollutants' which, if emitted by a factory, would have 'zero threshold'. 'In other words not one molecule of the chemical would be permitted,' says Steinemann. These regulations do not, however, apply to consumer products. None of the volatiles were listed as ingredients on the products' labels.
Steinemann concedes that her study has limitations. She used gas chromatography and mass spectrometry to measure a lower threshold concentration of 300 micrograms per metre cubed in the 'headspace' above the product, and accepts that the work gives no direct indication of concentration of the compounds that people would be exposed to.
There is no obligation on manufacturers to list ingredients of products, Steinemann says: the manufacturer only needs to add a warning to their label if they believe a particular ingredient to be hazardous under certain circumstances. 'Given that people do report effects when exposed to certain fragranced products, further research could help to uncover the sources of risk and the role of ingredient information,' she says.
The Consumer Specialty Products Association (CPSA), which represents manufacturers in the US, said that the research paper 'grossly mischaracterises US regulation of air fresheners and laundry products'. 'These products are safe when used according to product labels,' says Chris Cathcart, president of the CSPA. 'It appears the author has misunderstood current labelling requirements under the Federal Hazardous Substances Act [which covers air fresheners and laundry products]; those requirements assure that the most meaningful information for consumers is included on the product label.'
Steinemann's study is the latest in a series of consumer warnings and research papers examining fragrance products over the last few years. In March 2008 the UK government's Committee on Toxicity of Chemicals in Food, Consumer Products and the Environment reviewed current information on air fresheners. It concluded that 'the available data on air freshener emissions establish that VOCs and particulates are released with varying emission rates across (and within) product types. Further, several of the specific VOCs have the potential to cause respiratory effects if sufficient concentrations are reached. The potential for respiratory effects may be heightened among certain individuals (eg children, elderly, people with respiratory conditions or odour/chemical intolerant individuals). However, it is not possible to reach a specific conclusion on this aspect for air fresheners.'
In 2004  the European consumers' organisation BEUC was sued by an air freshener manufacturer and forced to retract claims that air fresheners 'pose a real risk to health', after it said it had found potentially harmful chemicals in scented consumer products.   Steinemann is not naming any brands of the products she tested, which included three types of air freshener (a solid disk, a liquid spray and a plug-in device) and three scented laundry products - a 'dryer sheet' which is put with laundry in a drying machine, a fabric softener and a detergent.
Simon Hadlington
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ReferencesA C Steinemann, Environ. Impact Assess Rev., 2008, DOI: 10.1016/j.eiar.2008.05.02


29 July 2008
Chemistry World