Pollutants: Hazardous house dust

Christiane Fux studied journalism and psychology in Hamburg. The experienced medical editor has been writing magazine articles, news and factual texts on all conceivable health topics since 2001. In addition to her work for, Christiane Fux is also active in prose. Her first crime novel was published in 2012, and she also writes, designs and publishes her own crime plays.

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House dust is not only a problem for allergy sufferers: the bugs often also contain harmful substances. This can be particularly dangerous for small children.

Dust is omnipresent. It gathers in corners of the room and lays down as a layer on furniture and floors. In doing so, it stores what we surround ourselves with in everyday life: it contains flakes of skin and hair, clothing fluff, food crumbs and dirt that is carried into the house with shoes.

These main components of the dust are harmless: However, harmful chemicals also adhere to the annoying lint, which evaporate from furniture, floors, building materials and plastic objects, for example. An analysis by the George Washington University revealed ten toxic substances that were found in 90 percent of the house dust samples examined. "Our results show that the population, and especially children, are exposed to various chemicals on a daily basis that can cause serious health problems," says study leader Ami Zota.

Plasticizers in the air

At the top of the list was the plasticizer DEHP, as well as three other so-called phthalates, which are used in plastic products - in PVC floors, shower curtains and packaging, for example.

Among other things, phthalates are suspected of negatively influencing the human endocrine system. This can be problematic, especially for children who are still developing. Since small children often put objects in their mouths and thus ingest larger amounts of house dust, the pollutants accumulate particularly strongly in their bodies.

Many phthalates have been shown to affect male fertility. In addition, there is a potential loss of intelligence and a higher risk of respiratory diseases in children. Damage to the liver, the nervous system and the immune system as well as being more beneficial to obesity and insulin resistance are also discussed.

Phenols and flame retardants

The researchers also found phenols, which are used in cleaning agents, for example. They can damage the kidneys, liver, digestive tract and blood, but also the central nervous system and the heart and circulatory system.

The researchers also rated the fact that flame retardants were found in the house dust as questionable. They reduce the flammability of electronic devices, upholstered furniture, carpets and insulation materials. At the same time, however, they are suspected of reducing the performance of the brain.

House dust - also a danger in Germany

The results of the US researchers cannot be transferred one-to-one to German conditions - a study by the Federal Environment Agency in 600 households, however, showed in 2008 that house dust is hardly less polluted in this country. In addition to evaporated plasticizers - in some cases in concentrations well above the limit value - health workers even found substances in four out of five households that have long been banned to protect health: the wood preservative pentachlorophenol (PCP), which is possibly carcinogenic, and the mosquito repellent DDT, which can damage the nerves, among other things.

Ventilate and wipe with a damp cloth

In order to reduce the health risk, the Federal Environment Agency recommends ventilating the room several times a day for about five to ten minutes. Because in fact the air outside is often less polluted than inside, despite the exhaust gases it contains. Dust that has already settled should also be removed with a damp microfiber cloth.

Source:

Susanna D. Mitro et al .: Consumer Product Chemicals in Indoor Dust: A Quantitative Meta-analysis of U.S. Studies, Environ. Sci. Technol, September 14, 2016, DOI: 10.1021 / acs.est.6b02023

Federal Environment Agency, www.umweltbundesamt.de, accessed on September 27, 2016

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