Are Aerosol Based Air Fresheners Good For You

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Are Fresheners Good For You ?

The accepted practice at most of the offices as well as homes  for removing bad odor is very simple these days. Mask the bad odor with  good odor. Most of the people use aerosol based air fresheners . On the face of it, the product has a purpose to serve and owes its existence partly to aggressive marketing skills and partly to perceived benefits accruing from its frequent usage.

The expression “air freshener” however, becomes a misnomer as most of these products on the market shelf not only emit as well as  generate potentially hazardous air pollutants. Some of the brands that get clubbed into the ‘green’ and ‘organic’ category are no less harmful when it comes to exposing the users to hazardous air pollutants. 

The consumers do not know the truth behind the terms like organic or green keep using these products innocuously. It may be partly due to nondisclosure on the part of the brands about the nature of the ingredients and the potential hazards that can result from usage.

It is discovered that owing to regulatory protections offered to consumer product ingredients, the truth about the perils and health hazards they pose hardly find any mention in the fact sheets. These ingredients are capable of seriously impairing the quality of air where it is used. It has come to light that on an average, air fresheners emit upward of 100 different chemicals that include both volatile organic compounds and semi-volatile versions too. Some of the commonly known chemicals include formaldehyde, benzene, toluene and Xylene.

It is just not about emission of hazardous volatile chemical substances. It also involves the way air freshener ingredients react with indoor oxidants such as Ozone, hydroxyl radicals and nitrate radicals.

Pollutants that result from the air fresheners can be categorized as primary and secondary in nature.

Primary pollutants include those that

are directly emitted by the said freshener such as terpenes. 

Secondary pollutants are those formed by reaction of the primary pollutants with gases in the ambient air like Ozone. A few pollutants that result from interaction with Ozone gas, namely formaldehyde, acetaldehyde, and glycol ethers can cause extensive damage to the human respiratory tracts and also cause breathlessness.

The air freshener product or brand is required to transparently list the composition of ingredients percentage wise, and concentration of chemicals being used. The study is undertaken by some alert consumer forums and activists putting to use elements of reactive chemistry. Unfortunately, owing to lack of awareness, the seriousness or gravity of adverse health effects that are caused by even relatively low-level air freshener usage is lost on the average consumer. The ailments that result from the usage of this product include migraine , headaches, asthma attacks, breathing difficulties, respiratory problem, mucosal symptoms, dermatitis, infant diarrhea, earache, neurological problems, and ventricular fibrillation.

The users get easily conned by usage of labels like “Green”, “Organic”, “all-natural” that serve to create the impression that the product is user friendly and good for the ambiance. This happens mainly because of the absence of regulatory or chemical defini- tions that can certify such claims. In short, the branding of air fresheners as eco-friendly and safe to use from a health point of view is devoid of any substantiation. Needless .Beware of air fresheners claiming to be “green”

o substitute a bad odor with an over-

whelming dose of good odor and make

your home or office premise pleasant smelling is the purpose why air fresheners find a market in most urban and semi urban areas. On the face of it, the product has a purpose to serve and owes its existence partly to aggressive marketing skills and partly to perceived benefits accruing from its frequent usage.

I would like to recommend genuinely eco-friendly alternatives like camphor, potpourris and Tulsi. Natural anti-bacterial properties of  camphor is a healthy option. Potpourris and Tulsi comprise naturally aromatic flower petals and leaves. They do not contain any artificial chemicals or filters. People suffering from chest congestion and inflammation get relief from usage of such kinds of fresheners. Try to make the best of what nature offers us.