With respiratory diseases affecting 1 in 5 people and being the third biggest cause of death in England, it's crucial to create healthy spaces to reduce respiratory triggers and disinfect spaces to prevent the spread of other diseases that could worsen the health of sufferers. Yet, our reliance on traditional cleaning and disinfection creates a catch-22 situation, where we compromise clean spaces with air pollution, leading to long-term health effects.
This article aims to explore:
Modern society has allowed us to carry out day-to-day activities such as work, shopping, and socialising within enclosed spaces away leading to the majority of people spending 90% of our time indoors. With the indoors becoming the main space where people live out various areas of their life, it emphasises the need for making indoor spaces clean, safe, and healthy. However, maintaining a truly healthy space involves considering indoor air quality (IAQ), which isn't as easy as it seems, as many of these types of pollutants aren’t immediately detected by the human eye. IAQ refers to the air quality within buildings, ensuring that indoor air pollutants aren’t affecting the health and comfort of their occupants. Indoor air pollution can come from a plethora of different things, from tobacco products, excess moisture, building materials, and even cleaning chemicals. Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) are found across different cleaning products from aerosol sprays, surface cleaners, air fresheners, and even some green-labelled products. This is where the conflict arises for those wanting to protect their respiratory health: while safe, clean spaces are necessary, many cleaning chemicals contribute to indoor air pollution. Traditional cleaning and disinfection products often rely on harsh synthetic chemicals, which when used, release VOCs into the air of that indoor space. These emitted VOC fumes that, when inhaled, contact the lung tissue and cause immediate effects such as inflammation, coughing, and shortness of breath and long-term exposure of these airborne chemicals can lead to severe health issues in later life. For example, ammonia, when released as a gas, then breathed in, makes contact the sensitive tissue lining of the lungs, resulting in cell death and destroying healthy lung tissue, causing inflammation. If this happens repeatedly over a long time, it can permanently damage the lung tissue. And with a recent study revealing that VOC concentrations are up to ten times higher indoors than outdoors, it’s concerning given how much time many of us spend inside. IAQ should be a top priority for those managing indoor public spaces for the protection of their staff and public health.
People with pre-existing respiratory issues are often advised to go outside for fresh air to reduce exposure to indoor pollutants. Yet, climate change is impacting outdoor air quality, making it difficult for those with respiratory problems to find safe environments. Although there are many factors contributing to climate change our reliance on fossil fuels, which are used in many traditional cleaning chemicals via petrochemicals, exacerbates this issue. Traditional cleaning affects both IAQ and outdoor pollution, adding to respiratory health problems. Outdoor pollutants affecting respiratory health include:
For individuals with asthma, COPD, or other respiratory issues, removing pollutants like dust, mould, and microbes is essential to controlling symptoms and limiting flare ups. However, the use of certain cleaning products can aggravate these conditions as these chemicals act as respiratory irritants. For example, VOCs in cleaning products can provoke asthma symptoms such as nocturnal breathlessness, increased bronchial responsiveness, and decreased lung function. Common culprits include QUATS, formaldehyde, phthalates, and ammonium hydroxide.
A 2018 study found that people in industrial or domestic cleaning jobs are at a significantly increased risk of developing COPD. Research suggests that repeated exposure to cleaning chemicals harms the lungs incrementally, leading to lasting damage. Women who clean professionally experience a faster decline in lung function compared to those who do not, with an increased risk of developing COPD.
Prolonged exposure to cleaning chemicals can lead to long-term respiratory health problems even for those without pre-existing conditions. After age 35, lung function naturally declines, but this usually isn’t noticed until that person is in their 50’s/60’s. However, if a person is exposed to respiratory irritants (such as dust, smoking, chemicals) for a prolonged period before this age, it can accelerate this process, causing them to feel this early decline in lung function. A study of 6,000 participants over two decades found that women who used spray cleaning products at least once a week showed a significant decline in lung function. And within the same study they concluded that professional cleaners exposed to these chemicals daily experienced the highest rate of lung function decline. Similarly, nurses exposed to cleaning products and disinfectants in their jobs were 25%-38% more likely to develop COPD.
Long-term health risks aren't limited to adults. Children in homes where cleaning products are used frequently during infancy have higher odds of recurrent wheezing and asthma diagnoses. Research indicates that 1 in 7 cases of adult asthma can be attributed to the use of common sprays.
Respiratory diseases are not just an issue for individual health and wellbeing but also a growing strain on the NHS. The annual economic burden from lung conditions costs the NHS £11 billion annually and continues to grow, with hospital admissions for lung diseases rising over the last seven years. Finding a way to limit respiratory harm (short and long term) is vital for our society.
Current methods of cleaning and disinfection aren't the best way to promote healthy, clean spaces, as they push a trade-off into public respiratory health. Even with the mandate of PPE, like masks when cleaning, we aren't dealing with the issue head-on, as we are avoiding the problem of indoor air pollution while adding to the growing issues of climate change.
To protect respiratory health, we need proactive research, examining the chemicals in our cleaning products to identify harmful substances. As mentioned before, not all green-labelled cleaning products are better for IAQ, as some still contain chemicals, even though at reduced rates, like fragrances which can irritate pre-existing conditions.
A shift to fully naturally derived cleaning products, containing biotech or ecotech, will allow for better IAQ without compromising on cleaning standards. A move to these products not only safeguards the health of those in that space and those using the products, but also doesn't add to the external issues that global warming has on health.
While cleaning and disinfection are vital for controlling irritants and pathogens that can harm individuals with respiratory issues, our current reliance on harsh chemicals presents a significant health risk and added strain on our health service. As more of the population spends their time inside, finding a balance between maintaining clean spaces and ensuring good indoor air quality to protect the respiratory health of both current sufferers and the general population will continue to be essential. But to do this, we need to opt away from traditional cleaning, as the data shows its harmful effects on respiratory health. Establishments need to look more into truly naturally derived ingredients which no longer put cleaning and breathing at odds. This balance is crucial as we seek to create healthier indoor environments without contributing to outdoor pollution and further respiratory problems.