Formaldehyde Exposure and Neuropsychiatric Disorders

Abstract

Formaldehyde is getting more widely used in modern industrial and information society. Exposure to ambient air pollution is a serious and common public health concern. The high risk of formaldehyde exposure often occurs in the occupational settings, including scientific laboratories in hospitals and universities, particle board/plywood plants, fire sites, etc. Despite the data showing workplace formaldehyde exposures well below those typically considered risks to health, workers complained psychiatric disorders more frequently, and the syndromes could be rescued after leaving the workplace for a period of time. In addition to the occupational formaldehyde exposure sites, urea-formaldehyde resins in building and furnishing materials contributes to the major component of indoor air pollution where people act and live in newly decorated houses and rooms. More people are at high risk of long-term and low-level formaldehyde exposure because of the low ventilation rate indoor. Epidemiological studies show that people complain a series of neuropsychiatric symptoms, such as depression, anxiety, sleep disorders, malaise, balance dysfunctions, headache, indigestion, lethargy, decrease in motor activity and loss of appetite. All those further confirmed that the neuropsychiatric symptoms are highly related to the long-term formaldehyde exposure in the air. In the case of long-term formaldehyde exposure, the victims (17 males, 20 females; average age of 38 years old) mainly showed anxiety symptoms. Around 60.7% of them had elevated levels of urine formaldehyde compared with the normal control. In other words, it is necessary to determine and monitor endogenous formaldehyde for the victims suffering a long-term exposure. Although exogenous formaldehyde causes depression, anxiety and circadian rhythm disorders, whether endogenous formaldehyde induces those symptoms is still unclear. Here, we discuss the effects of formaldehyde exposure on psychosomatic behaviours such as rhythm disorders, depression, anxiety and other behavioural disorders except for cognitive impairment.