Fragrances & Work-Related Asthma

While many men and women enjoy the scent of perfumes and fragrances that are found in personal care products, air fresheners and even cleaning products, these same scents can act as a respiratory irritant for others. Even worse, the smell of a strong perfume or fragrance could possibly trigger an asthma attack for some people with the condition.

Unfortunately for some asthmatics, exposure to asthma triggers, such as perfumes and fragrances, may occur frequently in the work environment. Work-related asthma (occupational asthma) is a lung disease that can cause a shortness of breath, chest tightness, coughing and wheezing after exposure to an allergen or irritant at work. A severe case can be disabling and in extreme circumstances, an asthma attack could result in death.

To address this workplace issue, the California Work-Related Asthma Prevention Program (WRAPP) has published information for employers and workers about exposure to fragrances. The program reports finding hundreds of asthma cases in California associated with exposures to fragrances from indoor work environments as diverse as schools, hospitals, offices and manufacturing facilities.

The WRAPP fact sheets highlight several case studies and offer tips to help prevent asthma in the workplace from exposure to perfumes and fragrances. Their suggestions include:
• Training employees about the health effects of fragrances.
• Having a fragrance-free policy.
• Prohibiting the use of air fresheners in the workplace.
• Fixing or removing what is causing bad odors.
• Choosing fragrance-free cleaning products.
• Bringing in adequate fresh air from the outside.

These are just a few things to know about occupational exposures to fragrances and perfumes and their association with work-related asthma. To learn more about this or other indoor air quality, occupational, environmental, health or safety issues, please visit the websites shown below.

Clark Seif Clark http://www.csceng.com
EMSL Analytical, Inc. http://www.emsl.com
LA Testing http://www.latesting.com
Zimmetry Environmental http://www.zimmetry.com