CLEANING is a chore that most of us don’t want to do.
But if you’ve noticed your home is looking a little worse for wear, it might be time to raid the cleaning cupboard.
GettyExperts advise wearing a mask when cleaning in order to protect your lungs from chemicals[/caption]
While you might get spray happy with the glass cleaner, or douse your toilet in bleach, one expert has warned that you should be wearing a face covering.
Lung specialist MeiLan Han, a professor of pulmonary and critical care at the University of Michigan, US, said masks can help protect your health when you decide to give the bathroom or kitchen a once over.
She said it’s important that our lungs don’t ‘get dirty’, which can happen when we are cleaning.
“If I’m cleaning somewhere dusty or mouldy, I’ll wear a mask. We recently had our basement remodelled and I requested that the carpet be aired out before it was installed.
“Volatile organic compounds – which come from cleaning products, paints and new carpets – have been linked to inflammation and lung damage,” she told The Telegraph.
The expert said that our lungs start developing when we are still inside the womb, maturing and peaking in our early 20s.
After that, everyone starts to lose lung function, she said.
Prof Han explained that a lot of damage can occur before you become short of breath, so a lot of people are unaware they are damaging their lungs.
She said that there have been instances where she has removed lungs and examined them several times and found that even non smokers have black particles on their organs.
That’s because a fair proportion of the stuff we breathe in, never comes out again, she added.
A study published in 2016 by experts at the University of Bergen found that people who regularly clean their homes are at 14 per cent greater risk of experiencing a decline in their lung function over the next 20 years.
And the harmful substances are typically found in a range of products, from washing up liquids and bleach to floor cleaners.
Oistein Svanes, a PhD student who led the study, said: “We need to start being much more aware of the chemicals we are releasing into the air we breathe when we use things like cleaning spray.”
Constant exposure to cleaning chemicals has also been linked to higher asthma rates.
D. Norman H. Edelman, senior consultant for scientific affairs at the American Lung Association, previously advised that for the home, you should use non-toxic cleaners, especially if you have asthma or allergies.
“In an attempt to be vigorous, many people use chlorine bleaches and lye at home, and this can be very irritating to the lungs.
“And it is usually not really necessary to use products like this. If people are going to use these products, they often don’t know how to protect themselves,” he told Reuters.
He added that particle masks might help, but said that they won’t keep the fumes out and that cleaners and other labourers constantly exposed to chemicals should consider ‘robust equipment’.