Indoor air in offices is an important source of worker exposure to potentially toxic substances released by carpeting, furniture, paint and other items, a new study has revealed.
Indoor air in offices is an important source of worker exposure to potentially toxic substances released by carpeting, furniture, paint and other items, a new study has revealed.
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Michael McClean and colleagues explain that PFCs, used in water-repellent coatings on carpet and furniture, may have adverse effects on human health.
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The substances are widespread in the environment and in humans around the world.
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Scientists know that potential sources of exposure include food, water, indoor air, indoor dust and direct contact with PFC-containing objects.
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But the link between levels in air and blood had not been explored previously, so McClean's group set out to fill that gap with a study of 31 office workers in Boston.
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They found concentrations of a PFC called fluorotelomer alcohol (FTOH) in office air that were 3-5 times higher than those reported in previous studies of household air, "suggesting that offices may represent a unique and important exposure environment."
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In addition, the study found a strong link between concentrations of FTOH in office air and perfluorooctanoic acid (a metabolite of FTOH) in the blood of office workers.
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The results also suggested that workers in newly renovated office buildings might receive considerably higher doses of PFCs than workers in older buildings.
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The study appeared in ACS' journal Environmental Science and Technology.
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