Pollutant products that harm our health

Perhaps what we are not so aware of is the fact that, day by day, we are exposed to a series of polluting products that, in a more larval way, can also harm our health, mainly at the respiratory level, but also globally. Let's know what they are:

Cleaning products

One of the main groups of polluting products that can affect our health is that of cleaning products. Detergents, degreasers, limescale liquids, soaps, bleach, plungers, polishes ... contain a series of chemicals that, when inhaled, can trigger an asthma attack, decrease lung capacity or aggravate existing lung diseases.

Several studies have assessed that the regular use of these products by cleaning professionals or who clean their own home with these products and without taking precautions can present a significant decrease in lung capacity.

What are the effects of these polluting products

The effect of these chemicals will depend on the type of product. Laundry and dishwasher detergents have little or no toxicity, while other products, such as fabric softeners and disinfectants, are more corrosive. Likewise, those products in whose composition there are strong acids (muriatic, hydrochloric, nitric) and strong bases or alkalis (ammonia, caustic soda, sodium hypochlorite) have a high corrosive or caustic power. These substances can cause chemicals on the skin and mucous membranes when in contact with them. Frequent and continuous exposure to these products, such as in the case of cleaning professionals, can cause severe respiratory or skin problems and, as the cause-and-effect relationship is not entirely clear, it is sometimes difficult to achieve recognition as an occupational disease.

It is essential that cleaning professionals and those of us who are not, take precautions when using these products, such as wearing gloves and masks, not mixing products that can cause dangerous chemical reactions (such as bleach and ammonia, whose union releases chlorine in gas form, which is toxic) and never touch your eyes without first washing your hands with soap and water.

Hand soap

Another toxic product whose use has spread in recent years is triclosan, a compound found in disinfectant soaps that many people use to wash their hands, especially in hospitals. Despite being a good disinfectant, its abuse irritates the skin and can cause redness, itching, dryness and an allergic reaction.

Toner

Other substances that can be harmful to our health and of which we are not aware are: polluting products that carries the toner of photocopiers and laser printers. The toner of these machines is not made up of liquid ink, but of a kind of black powder that is formed - with variations in the proportions depending on the brand - by a polymer (plastic resin) binder with a low melting point in 85%, about 10% of carbon black or carbon black, which is the substance that gives the ink its black color, and about 5% of a charge control agent, a substance that participates in the electrostatic process of reproduction. Likewise, toner contains a series of substances that can be harmful to our health, such as copper, benzene, ethylbenzene, chlorobenzene, toluene, styrene, xylenes and other derivatives of benzene, aliphatic hydrocarbons (dodecane, hexadecane), chlorinated hydrocarbons (trichlorethylene, tetrachlorethylene) formaldehyde, siloxanes (organic derivatives of silicon) or ozone. The toner dust contains particles with a diameter ranging between 10 and 20 microns, formed by the carbon black pigment, and which can cause irritation and sensitization at the respiratory, skin and ophthalmological levels. Exposure to these polluting products, punctual or repeated, can cause rhinitis, chronic cough, skin irritation, skin itching, conjunctivitis and headaches.