A Small Dose of ToxicsAtHome – 12/10/11 An Introduction To The Health Effects of Toxic Products In...

A Small Dose of ToxicsAtHome – 12/10/11

An Introduction To The Health Effects of Toxic Products In The Home

A Small Dose of Toxics At Home

A Small Dose of ToxicsAtHome – 12/10/11 A Small Dose of Toxicology

Home, Sweet Home!

Be it ever so humble, there ’s no place like home.

Home, Sweet Home!

John Howard Payne


Toxics in the Home

Household products Mold & mildew Radon Indoor air Second hand smoke Lead Paint solvents


Household Hazardous Waste

How many pounds of household hazardous waste

in your home?(i.e. paints, varnishes, motor oil, pesticides, antifreeze, fluorescent

lights)


Product Hazards

Flammability Reactivity Corrosive (strong acid or base) Toxicity: human Toxicity: environmental


Hazard and Risk

Risk =

Hazard X Exposure

Dose / Response

Individual Sensitivity


Exposure Routes

IngestionDirect ingestion of product

Hand to mouth contact

InhalationAcute inhalation of product during use

Chronic inhalation of indoor air

Skin/eye contactSplashing/spilling during use

Violent chemical reactions

Contact with treated surfaces


Poisoning Facts

Poisoning events in United States - 2000 2.2 million reported exposures 53% involved children under age 6 90% occurred in the home 475,079 treated in a health care facility 920 deaths reported in 2000Source: National Poison Centers, 2000 data (Litovitz, 2001)


More Poisoning Facts

Frequency by category

0 50000 100000 150000 200000 250000

cleaners

personal care

plants

pesticides

animal bites

art, craft, office

paint products

automotive

mushrooms

Incidents reported


Even More Poisoning Facts

Moderate to serious outcomes

0.00% 5.00% 10.00% 15.00% 20.00% 25.00% 30.00%

rust remover

drain (alkaline)

lighter fluid

ammonia

mineral spirits

all cleaners

herbicides

laundry granules


Common Toxicity Measures

• LD50: acute ingestion (mg/kg)

• LC50: acute inhalation (ppm)

• Draize score: skin irritation

• TLV: chronic inhalation (ppm)

• Reference dose: chronic exposure (mg/kg/day)


Oral Toxicity of Common Substances

Practically non-toxic (> 15,000 mg/kg)Probable oral lethal dose for 150 lb adult > 1 quart

modeling clayparaffin waxbaby lotionblemish cover (e.g. Clearasil)bone mealcat litter


Slightly toxic

Slightly toxic (5,000 to 15,000 mg/kg)Probable oral lethal dose for 150 lb adult: between 1 pt & 1 qt

hand dishwashing liquidwindow cleanerlatex house paintsoapdeodorant (roll-on)white glue (e.g. Elmers)


Moderately toxic

Moderately toxic (500 to 5,000 mg/kg)Probable oral lethal dose for 150 lb adult: between 1 oz & 1 pt

antifreezedry cleaning fluid* (1,1,1-trichloroethane)motor fuels* (gasoline, kerosene, diesel fuel)shoe polishoil-based house paintholly berries

*NOTE: aspiration probably more important than toxicity


Very toxic

Very toxic (50 to 500 mg/kg)Probable oral lethal dose for 150 lb adult: between 1 tsp & 1 oz

aspirin and other analgesicslacquer thinnerstoluene, xylene (aromatic hydrocarbons)mothballs (camphor, naphthalene)tobacco leavesfoxglove (digitalis)caffeinediazinon insecticide


Extremely toxic

Extremely toxic (5 to 50 mg/kg)Probable oral lethal dose for 150 lb adult: 7 drops to 1 tsp

opiumcodeineoil of sassafras


Super toxic

Super toxic (< 5 mg/kg)Probable oral lethal dose for 150 lb adult: less than 7 drops

nicotinebotulinum toxins


TLVs of Common Ingredients

COMPOUND TLV FOUND IN at %ethanol 1000 vodka, gin, rum, etc. 40acetone 750 nail polish remover >50isopropanol 400 rubbing alcohol 70gasoline 300 motor fuel 100Methanol 200 Bix Stripper paint stripper 24-50turpentine 100 paint thinner 100xylene 100 spray paint bulkhexane 50 Carter’s rubber cement 90methylene chloride 50 Bix Tuff Job paint stripper 85paradichlorobenzene 10 mothballs 100carbon monoxide 10malathion 0.74 Ortho Malathion 50+ Insect Spray 50

formaldehyde 0.30chlorpyrifos 0.014 Dursban Spray 5.3diazinon 0.008 Diazinon Granules 5.0TLV – Threshold Limit Value


Carcinogens

Ingredient Product(s) % in Productchlorothalonil Daconil Fungicide 12.5-30%benzene gasoline >1%formaldehyde probably many unknownlead acetate Grecian Formula hair dyes 0.36%methylene chloride paint strippers (many) up to 85%p-dichlorobenzene mothballs (many) 100%vermiculite potting soils ?arsenic CCA-treated lumber 34% As2O5


Deducing Toxicity from Label Information

• Stick with federally regulated information

• Signal words only semi-consistent• Ignore marketing information• Be alert for inconsistencies

SIGNAL WORD

ADVERTISING

Example


Signal Words

Signal Word EPA CPSC FDA

DANGER Cat. I Ex. Haz not used

WARNING Cat. II Hazardous not used

CAUTION Cat. III/IV Hazardous “pay attention”

No sig. word not used Not Hazardous


Shortcomings of Label Information

• All ingredients not listed (except food, drug, cosmetic, personal care)

• Only pesticides have disposal and environmental information (and the disposal information is incorrect!)

• Signal words linked to acute hazards only

• Some labels contain marketing information that minimizes or contradicts safety warnings

• People don’t read labels anyway


Favorite Labels

“Confine pets during application to prevent them from believing they are being fed.” - slug bait

“Avoid use while smoking.” - hair spray

“This product must not be used for dyeing eyelashes or eyebrows. To do so may cause blindness.” - hair color


Label Contradictions

“...contains no harsh chemicals which could cause drying or damage...no gloves, no caps, does not irritate your skin” “You get rid of gray gradually, naturally”

…………..but there’s more


The Rest of the Story

• Caution: contains lead acetate. [a carcinogen]

• For external use only.

• Keep this product out of children’s reach.

• Do not use on cut or abraded skin. If skin irritation develops, discontinue use.


And That’s Not All!

—Grecian Formula hair dye

• Do not use to color mustaches, eyelashes, eyebrows or hair on parts of the body other than the scalp.

• Do not get in eyes. Follow instructions carefully and wash hands thoroughly after each use.”


Less-Toxic Alternatives

• Water-based products• Mechanical devices• Enzymes instead of solvents• Biological pesticides


Less-Toxic Alternatives

Alternative Instead of Using Toxic Ingredient Avoided

Latex paint Oil-based paint Solvents

Snake, plunger Caustic drain opener Corrosive lye

Scouring powder Acid toilet cleaner Corrosive hydrochloric acid

Beneficial Insecticide for Diazinon, carbaryl or other

nematodes soil grubs insecticide

Weed puller, Herbicide 2,4-D, dichlobenil, etc.

mulch


A Small Dose of ™ Toxics At Home


Resources from WTC

• Washington Toxics Coalition (WTC) Home Safe Home consumer fact sheets

• Toxics Hotline: 800-844-SAFE• Internet: www.watoxics.org

Thanks to Philip Dickey from WTC for providing many of the slides and information for the chapter.


Additional Information

Web Sites• U.S. Household Products Database – National

Institutes of Health, National Library of Medicine. <http://householdproducts.nlm.nih.gov/index.htm>

Site has a range of information about household products including their potential health threats.

• U.S. Environmental Protection Agency - Household Waste Management. <http://www.epa.gov/seahome/hwaste.html> Site has a self-directed educational program on managing household waste.


Authorship Information

For Additional Information ContactSteven G. Gilbert, PhD, DABT

E-mail: [email protected]: www.asmalldoseof.org

This presentation is supplement to “A Small Dose of Toxicology”

Date post:	15-Jan-2016
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