Festive scented candles could be worse for your health than CIGARETTES as millions warned over ‘deadly’ Christmas gifts
Researchers have warned that candles with festive scents may be more harmful to your health than cigarettes.
Adding scents of pine, cinnamon, and gingerbread to your house may raise your risk of lung cancer and heart disease.
Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and harmful gasses including carbon monoxide, sulfur dioxide, and nitrogen oxides are released when scented candles burn.
Peak particle concentrations, according to the researchers, may rise up to 15 times the WHO’s recommended thresholds.
They added that it would take some time for a room’s levels to return to normal.
According to the study, burning scented candles had the biggest effect on air quality in compact, poorly ventilated spaces.
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The warning was published in The Conversation by Dr. Marie Coggins, a senior lecturer at the University of Galway, and Asit Kumar Mishra, a research fellow at University College Cork.
“Use of scented candles or smoking, when combined with blocked wall vents and closed windows, worsens exposure to indoor air pollutants for householders,” they stated.
For instance, peak concentrations of fine particles may rise to 15 times the WHO’s recommended limits when burning scented candles.
“In rooms with inadequate ventilation, it took some time for these levels to return to normal.
“A complex mixture of chemicals and particulate matter, including harmful gasses like carbon monoxide, sulfur dioxide, and nitrogen oxides, are produced when candles or incense sticks are burned.
Additionally, a number of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) that are potentially hazardous to health can be produced by home fragrance products.
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Particulate matter can irritate the eyes, nose, throat, and lungs in addition to causing short-term health impacts including coughing and sneezing.
Chronic bronchitis, lung cancer, and heart disease can all be made more likely by prolonged exposure.
“Particulate matter can also worsen some existing conditions, such as asthma.”
The scientists pointed out that poisonous compounds and dangerous pollution levels can also be released by “natural” household fragrances.
Candle burning was recommended by the researchers for larger areas with open windows.
To lessen the fumes inside, they also suggested putting out fires outside.
The study assessed the air quality in 14 households in Galway, Ireland, and it was published in the journal Indoor Environments.
What are the symptoms of nonsmoker lung cancer?
Since the majority of nonsmokers do not exhibit any early symptoms of lung cancer, they frequently do not receive a diagnosis until the disease has spread.
However, Yale physicians noted that some people do experience symptoms in the early stages of the illness.
These symptoms, which resemble those of smokers, could include the following:
- A cough that doesn t go away or gets worse over time
- Coughing up blood
- Chest pain or discomfort
- Trouble breathing
- Wheezing
- Hoarseness
- Loss of appetite
- Weight loss for no reason
- Fatigue
- Trouble swallowing
- Swelling in the face and/or the neck
- Recurrent lung infections, including pneumonia
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