Formaldehyde in Commonplace Materials: A Danger to Your Health (EPA)

EPA Report: Formaldehyde is Danger to Health

Widely Used In Building Materials And Household Products, Formaldehyde Exposure Via Inhalation Is Found To Cause Cancer Among Other Side Effects
By: Lydia Wood – Friday, June 11, 2010
Source: iGreenBuild.com

June 4, 2010- Increasingly, with more thorough research and the benefit of time, it seems that the ingredients in commonplace materials are being found to pose a greater threat to human and environmental health than previously realized. It is unfortunate that in these cases ignorance is not bliss. From BPA in plastic to lead in toys, the U.S. EPA (Environmental Protection Agency) has been slow to react on a number of material additives that may or may not pose human and environmental threat. In a June 2^nd about- face on the issue of formaldehyde, the EPA released a formaldehyde assessment report, focusing on evaluating the potential toxicity of inhalation exposure. A draft of the report is available for independent peer review and public comment at [http://cfpub.epa.gov/ncea/iris_drafts/recordisplay.cfm?deid=223614].

Formaldehyde, a chemical intermediate, is used widely enough so that substantial concentrations may be found indoors and outdoors. At room temperature, formaldehyde is a colourless, flammable gas that has a distinct, pungent smell. It is also referred to as these less familiar names: methanal, methylene oxide, oxymethyline, methylaldehyde, and oxomethane.

Formaldehyde is used widely in the production of common materials used in building and renovation such as plywood adhesives, abrasive materials, insulation, foundry binders, surface coatings, molding compounds, laminates, wood adhesives made from melamine resins, phenolic thermosetting, resin curing agents, explosives made from hexamethylenetetramine, urethanes, lubricants, alkyd resins, acrylates made from trimethylolpropane, plumbing components from polyacetal resins, controlled release fertilizers made from urea formaldehyde concentrates, germicides, insecticides, and fungicides,

The most substantial anthropogenic emissions of formaldehyde come from motor vehicle exhaust, power plants, manufacturing plants that produce or use formaldehyde or substances that contain formaldehyde, petroleum refineries, coking operations, incineration, wood burning, and tobacco smoke. Among formaldehyde emissions derived from human activity, the greatest volume source of formaldehyde is automotive exhaust from engines not fitted with catalytic converters.

The EPA undertook the formaldehyde assessment in light of a number of potentially significant new studies published since the EPA’s last review of formaldehyde toxicity. The EPA’s previous assessment on formaldehyde occurred in 1989, at which time formaldehyde was listed as a “probable” carcinogen as opposed to the June 2^nd draft report, which labels formaldehyde as a “known” carcinogen.

Seven different noncancerous health effects were identified from formaldehyde inhalation exposure studies, including: 1) sensory irritation of the eyes, nose, and throat, 2) upper respiratory tract pathology, 3) pulmonary function, 4) asthma and atopy, 5) neurologic and behavior toxicity, 6) reproductive and developmental toxicity, and 7) immunological toxicity. Especially in children, effects were magnified in the spheres of increased asthma incidence, decreased pulmonary function, increase in respiratory symptoms, and increased allergic sensitization.

The report concludes that formaldehyde is carcinogenic to humans by the inhalation route of exposure; sufficient epidemiological evidence reveals a “casual association” between formaldehyde exposure and nasopharyngeal cancer, nasal and paranasal cancer, all leukemias, myeloid leukemia and lymphohematopoietic cancers as a group. Additionally, the report clarifies that “Epidemiological evidence is also strongly supportive of, but in itself not sufficient for, a conclusion of casual association for other upper-respiratory tract cancers, Hodgkins lymphoma, or multiple myeloma.”

Sensitivity to formaldehyde and its consequential side effects have been found to increase as a result of any exposure to formaldehyde. For some, this means that the more you are exposed to formaldehyde, the less you can tolerate it, and the more likely you are to develop health symptoms.

The implications of formaldehyde exposure give abundant reasons to build “green”, so that you protect your health by limiting formaldehyde fumes in the environment.

While such severe effects may seem unlikely, exaggerated, or abstract, the effects of formaldehyde are well known to thousands of Hurricane Katrina victims who claimed to suffer respiratory problems after being housed in government trailers contaminated with the chemical.

With a newfound knowledge of the dangers of formaldehyde, there are easy and available means to reduce your exposure. Three suggestions include using “exterior-grade” pressed wood products (they are lower-emitting because they contain phenol resins, not urea resins), using air conditioning and dehumidifiers to maintain moderate temperature and reduce humidity levels, and increase ventilation, particularly after brining new sources of formaldehyde into your environment.

When formaldehyde enters the environment, it dissolves easily and does not last for a long time in the water or air, nor does it build up in plants or animals. This does not detract from the serious repercussions of inhaling formaldehyde fumes. Its chemical breakdowns are formic acid and carbon monoxide.

The EPA’s draft formaldehyde assessment will be reviewed by an expert panel convened by the National Academy of Sciences whose guidance, in conjunction with all public comments, will be considered as the EPA completes its IRIS Health Assessment for Formaldehyde. Written comments on the draft assessment will be accepted for 90 days after it appeared in the Federal Register on June 2^nd.