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 Products such as bleach, glass cleaner, detergents and air
fresheners exacerbated asthma-related symptoms for the women, and
their reduced lung function lasted until the morning after exposure,
in some cases getting worse with time.
"These results support the importance of developing workplace health
and safety practices designed to limit exposures to irritant
chemicals in cleaning products," the study team writes in
Occupational and Environmental Medicine.
A wide variety of cleaning products are used by workers in settings
like offices, factories and hospitals, write David Vizcaya, of the
University of Montreal Hospital Research Center in Canada, and his
colleagues. Professional cleaning services are necessary to clean,
disinfect, and control dust and mold on surfaces, but a number of
studies in recent years have reported associations between exposure
to cleaning products and asthma, the researchers note.
Vizcaya and his team evaluated respiratory symptoms over about two
weeks in 21 women who had asthma symptoms within the past year,
eight of whom also had a longer history of asthma. All were
employees of cleaning companies in Barcelona, Spain.
During the study period, the women recorded the different types of
cleaning products they used at work as well as how they used them,
such as in spray or liquid form. The list included 14 different
generic cleaning agents including bleach, detergents, degreasers,
carpet cleaners and waxes and polishes.
On average, the women used just over two different types of cleaning
products each day, and on about three out of every four working days
the women were exposed to at least one strong irritant, such as
ammonia, bleach or hydrochloric acid.
The researchers found that during this period, 17 women reported
having at least one upper respiratory tract symptom, such as
sneezing, scratchy throat and runny nose. Eighteen women also
reported at least one lower respiratory tract symptom, such as
coughing, wheezing or chest pain.
There was a stronger association between exposure to cleaning
products and developing these symptoms among women with a history of
asthma, as compared to the rest of the group.
But due to the small number of participants in the study, the
authors caution that these results should be interpreted
"carefully," and that more research is needed.
Other recent studies have linked the chlorine in swimming pools and
in bleach used for cleaning homes and schools to asthma and
respiratory infections among swimmers and school children.
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The risk from cleaning products is not only seen among professional
cleaners, said Dr. Norman H. Edelman, senior consultant for
scientific affairs at the American Lung Association (ALA). Using
these products can be dangerous in the home as well.
"The ALA recommends that at least for the home, people use non-toxic
cleaners, especially for those with asthma and allergies," Edelman
told Reuters Health.
"In an attempt to be vigorous, many people use chlorine bleaches and
lye at home, and this can be very irritating to the lungs," Edelman
said. "And it is usually not really necessary to use products like
this. If people are going to use these products, they often don't
know how to protect themselves."
For instance, mixing cleaning products that contain bleach and
ammonia can cause severe lung damage, he noted.
In the industrial setting, protection for workers may vary
considerably, he added. Safety regulations will not only vary
between countries, but also depending on the type of industry.
"Many of the people working in this industry are day laborers, they
are not unionized and may be afraid to lose their jobs if they
complain or ask for protective gear," Edelman said.
In a large corporation or medical center, these workers may be
unionized and safety regulations will probably be more strongly
adhered to, but even then, the type of protective gear will make a
difference.
"Particle masks are not too expensive or cumbersome to use, but they
are not going to keep the fumes out," he said. "To keep out the
fumes, they may need more cumbersome equipment."
SOURCE: http://bmj.co/1AmtdKM Occupational Environmental Medicine,
online April 23, 2015.
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