Abstract
Fragranced consumer products, such as cleaning supplies, air fresheners, and personal care products, can emit a range of air pollutants and trigger adverse health effects. This study investigates the prevalence and types of effects of fragranced products on asthmatics in the American population. Using a nationally representative sample (n = 1137), data were collected with an on-line survey of adults in the USA, of which 26.8% responded as being medically diagnosed with asthma or an asthma-like condition. Results indicate that 64.3% of asthmatics report one or more types of adverse health effects from fragranced products, including respiratory problems (43.3%), migraine headaches (28.2%), and asthma attacks (27.9%). Overall, asthmatics were more likely to experience adverse health effects from fragranced products than non-asthmatics (prevalence odds ratio [POR] 5.76; 95% confidence interval [CI] 4.34–7.64). In particular, 41.0% of asthmatics report health problems from air fresheners or deodorizers, 28.9% from scented laundry products coming from a dryer vent, 42.3% from being in a room cleaned with scented products, and 46.2% from being near someone wearing a fragranced product. Of these effects, 62.8% would be considered disabling under the definition of the Americans with Disabilities Act. Yet 99.3% of asthmatics are exposed to fragranced products at least once a week. Also, 36.7% cannot use a public restroom if it has an air freshener or deodorizer, and 39.7% would enter a business but then leave as quickly as possible due to air fresheners or some fragranced product. Further, 35.4% of asthmatics have lost workdays or a job, in the past year, due to fragranced product exposure in the workplace. More than twice as many asthmatics would prefer that workplaces, health care facilities and health care professionals, hotels, and airplanes were fragrance-free rather than fragranced. Results from this study point to relatively simple and cost-effective ways to reduce exposure to air pollutants and health risks for asthmatics by reducing their exposure to fragranced products.
Highlights
Fragranced consumer products pervade society and emit numerous volatile organic compounds, such as limonene, alpha-Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.pinene, beta-pinene, acetaldehyde, and formaldehyde (Steinemann 2015; Nazaroff and Weschler 2004), and semivolatile organic compounds, such as musks and phthalates (Weschler 2009; Just et al 2010)
Main findings are presented and full results for asthmatics, non-asthmatics, and the general population are provided as supplemental documentation
99.0% are exposed to fragranced products at least once a week, from their own use (71.1% air fresheners and deodorizers; 85.9% personal care products; 78.4% cleaning supplies; 81.3% laundry products; 76.7% household products; 67.5% fragrance; 3.6% other)
Summary
Fragranced consumer products pervade society and emit numerous volatile organic compounds, such as limonene, alpha-. This article investigates the effects of exposure to fragranced products on asthmatics in the US population. In addition to health impacts, it investigates societal access, Air Qual Atmos Health (2018) 11:3–9 preferences for fragrance-free environments, awareness of fragranced product emissions, and implications for air quality and health. It compares results from the sub-population of asthmatics with non-asthmatics, as well as with the general US population, as reported in Steinemann (2016). The study provides important data on the extent and severity of the problem, pointing to opportunities to reduce the adverse health, economic, and societal effects by reducing exposure to fragranced products
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