Abstract
Asthma is an international concern, with risks linked to air pollutants. Fragranced consumer products, such as air fresheners and cleaning supplies, have been associated with health problems such as asthma attacks and breathing difficulties. This study investigates the health and societal effects of fragranced products on asthmatics in four countries: United States, Australia, United Kingdom, and Sweden. Nationally representative population surveys (n = 1137; 1098; 1100; 1100) found that, across the four countries, 26.0% of adults (n = 1151) are asthmatic, reporting medically diagnosed asthma (15.8%), an asthma-like condition (11.1%), or both. Among these asthmatics, 57.8% report adverse health effects, including asthma attacks (25.0%), respiratory problems (37.7%), and migraine headaches (22.6%), from exposure to fragranced products. In particular, 36.7% of asthmatics report health problems from air fresheners or deodorizers, 18.1% from the scent of laundry products coming from a dryer vent, 32.9% from being in a room cleaned with scented products, 38.7% from being near someone wearing a fragranced product, and 37.5% from other types of fragranced products. For 24.1% of asthmatics, health problems from fragranced products are potentially disabling. Further, 20.6% of asthmatics have lost workdays or lost a job, in the past year, due to fragranced product exposure in the workplace. Fragrance-free environments received widespread support. More than twice as many individuals, both asthmatics as well as non-asthmatics, would prefer that workplaces, health care facilities and professionals, airplanes, and hotels were fragrance-free rather than fragranced. This study provides evidence that asthmatics can be profoundly, adversely, and disproportionately affected by exposure to fragranced consumer products. Moreover, the study points to a relatively straightforward and cost-effective approach to reduce risks; namely, to reduce exposure to fragranced products.
Highlights
IntroductionFragranced consumer products—such as air fresheners, cleaning supplies, laundry detergents, scented candles, essential oils, colognes, soaps, and personal care products—are
Fragranced consumer products—such as air fresheners, cleaning supplies, laundry detergents, scented candles, essential oils, colognes, soaps, and personal care products—areElectronic supplementary material The online version of this article contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.A “fragranced consumer product” is a product that contains an added fragrance or that is largely comprised of fragrance (Steinemann 2016)
Of the general population surveyed in four countries, 26.0% of adults (n = 1151) are asthmatic (26.8% United States (US); 28.5% AU; 25.3% United Kingdom (UK); 23.2% SE), reporting medically diagnosed asthma (15.8%), an asthma-like condition (11.1%), or both (Table 1)
Summary
Fragranced consumer products—such as air fresheners, cleaning supplies, laundry detergents, scented candles, essential oils, colognes, soaps, and personal care products—are. A “fragranced consumer product” (or “fragranced product”) is a product that contains an added fragrance or that is largely comprised of fragrance (Steinemann 2016). A single “fragrance” in a product is typically a complex mixture of dozens of compounds (Steinemann 2015), many derived from petrochemicals (Sell 2006). No law in any country requires full disclosure of all ingredients in a fragrance. No law requires full disclosure of all ingredients in a. Air Qual Atmos Health (2019) 12:643–649 consumer product (other than for foods, drugs, and cosmetics). Consumers have limited information on fragrance ingredients as well as whether a product even contains a fragrance (Lunny et al 2017; Steinemann 2009)
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