Abstract
The assessment of potential health risks posed by formaldehyde in clothing to consumers is of increasing concern worldwide. Because of this, it is necessary to develop an exposure model that can realistically mimic clothes wearing conditions. This study aims to preliminarily develop a health risk assessment model for formaldehyde in clothing, and then to assess the potential health risk posed by formaldehyde in textiles to adults and infants in Vietnam using the model. Finally, this study aims to examine the plausibility of the adopted permissible values for formaldehyde in cloth- ing in Vietnam. In the model, two exposure factors for dermal exposure and overall exposure routes, i.e. sweat type and perspiration area, were considered. The margins of exposure (MOE) were calculated to estimate the health risks from worst case and average exposures. The assessment shows that acute exposure via inhalation can pose health risks to Vietnamese consumers in both cases. In regards to chronic exposure, dermal exposure is about four (for infants) and seven (for adults) times higher than exposure via inhalation, but no risks were found for average exposure. If a MOE of 100 is defined as ‘safe’ used, dermal and total chronic exposure to worst case cause potential risks, whereas no health risks were found for exposure to average case. With the model, the adopted Vietnamese permissible values for formaldehyde in clothing were assessed as not posing a health risk to Vietnamese consumers, hence they are accepted.
Highlights
In 2004, the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) classified formaldehyde as a human carcinogen [1] as well as highly toxic, and irritating
Dermal exposure is about four times to seven times higher than exposure via inhalation, meaning dermal exposure is the dominant route. This result agrees with the existing medical literature, i.e. the greatest concern for human health associated with formaldehyde in clothing is allergic contact dermatitis that stems from dermal exposure [5]
The maximum dose of formaldehyde in imported clothing in Vietnam (3,517 mg/kg) is very much higher than that in Europe (162.5 mg/kg). This difference is because the research for Dan- ish and European consumers used F2 = 100% owning to absence of data, whereas we used F2 = 10% for perspire- tion zones and 5% for other zones based on the latest discussion for garment textiles of the European Union (EU) Federal Institute for Risk Assessment [9] and the fact that that the weights of Vietnamese people are less than those of Europeans
Summary
In 2004, the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) classified formaldehyde as a human carcinogen [1] as well as highly toxic, and irritating. Subsequent to this classification, the first serious exposure event occurred in New Zealand (2007) [2] from Chinese imports. China Daily (2009) reported that 46.5% of clothing produced in Guangdong province, the most industrialized province in China, which exports clothing to Vietnam, exceeded the permissible levels of formaldehyde in textiles To control this substance in imported clothing and textiles (mainly from China, 36.6% of total imports) (Vietnam Statistics Office, 2009), the Vietnam Ministry of Industry and Trade (MOIT) issued a contemporary regulation for formaldehyde limits [6]. It is necessary to create a model to identify any health risks to Vietnamese consumers and to check the plausibility of the adopted values
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