Aerosols in household products account for almost 1 million deaths every year
08/27/2021 / By Ramon Tomey
An unlikely source of air pollution has been blamed from almost 1 million deaths every year. Up to 900,000 premature deaths have been attributed to anthropogenic secondary organic aerosols (ASOAs). While majority of ASOAs come from fossil fuel combustion, some of them can be found in everyday products such as household paint, cleaning items and pesticides.
Researcher Benjamin Nault says: “All those different smells you’re getting from paint are different [volatile organic compounds] that are being emitted [into the air.]” These compounds, commonly called VOCs, can become chemicals that clump together to form ASOAs in the long run. Majority of VOCs are produced indoors, but they eventually escape through open windows or tiny cracks in the foundation of homes.
Nault added that higher populations in urban areas contribute to increased ASOA production. “There’s more people living in urban areas. [You] need more of these everyday use products to paint all the apartments and townhouses, to put the asphalt down [and] to clean everything up,” he said. True enough, ASOAs often made up a significant portion of fine particulate matter (PM2.5) – another common pollutant – in urban areas.
https://www.environ.news/2021-08-27-aerosols-household-products-linked-yearly-deaths.html
