Air-fresheners as bad as cigarette smoke

Some household air-fresheners are more toxic than tobacco smoke, according to a Euro Weekly News story quoting Spain’s Consumer and User Organization (OCU).

The OCU says that some household air-fresheners that are heated, including oils, incense and perfumed candles, worsen the quality of the air because they have “excessive levels of toxic, allergenic and contaminating substances.”

It examined 20 air-fresheners to determine the substances they emitted into the air and found that, while these products were associated with a relaxing and healthy atmosphere, some made the air as toxic as that containing the tobacco smoke produced by a room full of smokers with lit cigarettes.

The air-fresheners were said to be a source of toxicity and to create health risks.

Only candles were “approved.”

Oils and incense were said to emit too many small particles that could be breathed in. They contained allergenic substances and compounds such as benzene and formaldehyde.

The OCU recommended not using these products, especially in the presence of children, pregnant women or people with allergies or asthma.

Even the use of candles should be kept to a minimum, it said.

The OCU and the other associations that carried out the study have demanded that the EU create a law limiting the emissions of such products and obliging manufacturers to inform people about the health risks.

They have asked also for there to be stricter controls on the sale of oils and incense, and the removal from the market of those that have high levels of emissions.