Living is everyone’s most basic need.
Remember this time last year? There was a lot of uproar about formaldehyde exceeding the standard in rental apartments, and the circle of friends was even swept by an article < < Ali P7 employee died of leukemia and rented a free formaldehyde room before his death > >.
Source: WeChat Screenshot
According to the article, Ali employee Wang Mou rented a free house and died of acute myeloid leukemia in July of that year. His wife found that the indoor formaldehyde exceeded the standard after testing the house, believing that this was an important factor causing Wang Mou’s death, so she sued freely.
After the article was published, it attracted extensive attention from netizens. In addition to denouncing the free companies that provide rental services, many people also had doubts and panic:
- Indoor formaldehyde is so horrible? Will formaldehyde in my house exceed the standard? Can you still live? What should I do?
Formaldehyde, a common indoor pollutant
Formaldehyde exceeds the standard, which is actually very common in China.
A 2017 study showed that the formaldehyde concentration in new homes in Chinese cities was 0.18 mg/m, exceeding the national standard (0.10 mg/m) published by the Ministry of Health.
The problem of formaldehyde exceeding the standard in houses was reported several years ago, but it did not attract much attention at that time.
Similar news has been reported every year in recent years.
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Source: Network Screenshot
Eating, sleeping, playing with computers… At least 1/3 of them will stay in the house 24 hours a day. The indoor environment has a great impact on health.
Various materials used in decoration, such as artificial boards, paints, chemical fiber fabrics, etc., are the main sources of indoor formaldehyde.
Formaldehyde can stimulate people’s eyes and respiratory tract mucosa, causing tears, throat pain, sneezing, cough, dyspnea and other symptoms, and can also induce asthma.
Animal experiments and epidemiological studies show that formaldehyde can lead to the occurrence of human nasopharyngeal carcinoma. In 2004, the authoritative International Cancer Research Institute (IARC) classified formaldehyde as a class 1 carcinogen.
If formaldehyde in decoration exceeds the standard, will you get leukemia?
Before this free incident, we often see similar reports:
A few months after XXX lived in the newly renovated house, he found leukemia, lymphoma, or some other cancer. After testing, it was found that formaldehyde in the home exceeded the standard.
Formaldehyde is the most common and easy pollutant to exceed the standard in interior decoration. It is also a category 1 carcinogen, which will increase the risk of human nasopharyngeal carcinoma.
Formaldehyde does have the possibility of inducing leukemia, but this is mainly based on occupational exposure of adult leukemia, the so-called occupational diseases, such as the oil industry and shoe factories.
In other words, some people are more likely to suffer from leukemia because they work in chemical plants and other places and are in close contact with higher concentrations of formaldehyde for a long time.
However, formaldehyde residues in our daily life are much lower than the doses exposed by these occupations, so there is no need to panic too much.
The current research cannot prove that there is a direct relationship between formaldehyde exceeding the standard caused by decoration and leukemia, but the pollution caused by decoration is real and endangers our health.
Decoration pollution, not only formaldehyde
In addition to formaldehyde, there are many kinds of indoor pollutants caused by decoration, which can be divided into three categories: organic pollutants, inorganic pollutants and radioactive pollution.
At present, the pollutants detected in China mainly include:
Benzene, toluene, xylene
Styrene, ammonia, radon…
They come from:
- Artificial boards, paints, etc.: Benzene, toluene, xylene, formaldehyde and other harmful substances may be released, which will irritate skin, eyes and upper respiratory tract. Sediment, bricks and tiles and cement concrete: may contain urea, which will release ammonia at high temperatures, irritate skin and mucous membrane, and make people feel uncomfortable with eyes and nose; Some natural stones: will release radioactive radon gas, causing radon pollution; … …
No matter in the home, shopping mall, hotel, company… as long as it is decorated, there may be pollution. Floors, cabinets, doors and windows, sofas, wall paint, etc., may be the source of pollutants.
What can we do in the face of pollution?
In China, the problem of indoor decoration pollution is widespread. In order to remove formaldehyde and other pollution, everyone has come up with various ways…
Some people heard that activated carbon has adsorption effect, so they filled the house with activated carbon.
Others heard that green plants can purify the air, and they wanted to plant green dill and Chlorophytum in the house…
Someone bought 200 pots of green plants at one go.
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Photo Source: Microblog Screenshot
In fact… these two methods have some effects on reducing the total volatile organic compounds (TVOC) in pollutants, but they are not very useful for removing formaldehyde.
Many indoor pollutants are volatile. There is only one really effective way to solve them besides using qualified decoration materials:
Ventilation
(exchange of indoor and outdoor air)
At present, there are two common ventilation methods:
1. Fresh air system
The outdoor air is purified by a new fan and then introduced into the room to achieve the purpose of indoor and outdoor air exchange. The effect of removing formaldehyde and other pollutants by this method is relatively stable, but the price is relatively high.
Step 2 Open windows for ventilation
The biggest advantage of window ventilation is that it does not cost money. However, its effect is relatively unstable. If the wind is too low and the air does not convect, indoor pollutants cannot be released. However, when the wind is suitable, its effect is very good.
Some studies have shown that the concentration of formaldehyde in indoor air can be reduced by about 70% ~ 90% by opening windows for 10 minutes in a short time. When the weather is fine, it is better to open more windows.
No matter which ventilation method is selected, attention should be paid to:
Harmful substances such as formaldehyde and benzene are easy to volatilize. In summer, when the temperature is high, the release of formaldehyde and other harmful substances from plates will be more serious. Therefore, more attention should be paid to ventilation to remove formaldehyde in summer.
Don’t rush to move in the decorated house. It is better to open the windows wide so that the smell can be dispersed before moving in in the first half of the year.
As for the behavior of some intermediary companies [decorating for one month and renting after installation], they are not responsible for the health of tenants.
Thank you, Dr. Sun Yafei, Department of Chemistry, Tsinghua University, and Dr. Ding Chao, Department of Oncology, Zhejiang Tumor Hospital, for their support to this article.
Responsible Editor: Feidi
Source of cover photo: www.hizy.net Genuine Photo Library
