wood toxicity

[hughie]

For those who wonder and for those who susceptible to wood dust

Wood Allergies and Toxicity | The Wood Database (http://www.wood-database.com/wood-articles/wood-allergies-and-toxicity/)

[BobL]

An interesting statement on that page is;


All inhaled wood dust is hazardous to your long-term health. This chart simply lists specific woods that can aggravate symptoms through allergic reactions, or woods that are outright toxic in and of themselves. However, all woods produce fine dust when worked, which in turn can damage your lungs and cause a number of other adverse health reactions.

It's not just inhaled dust that can cause problems. Ingested wood dust has been linked to stomach cancers, and contact with skin and eyes leads to allergic reactions just as often and easily as through inhalation.

It's looking increasingly like specific wood toxicity may even be a minor issue in the overall scheme of things.

Over the last few years an international panel of 30 epidemiologists have undertaken a major study of how ALL (not just wood) particles of 2.5 microns and smaller affect human health.

The major outcome of that study was that in March of this year, exposure to 2.5 micron particles and smaller was raised from the eighth leading cause of death world wide to the 5th leading cause of death.

Before this time only wood dust of ~5 to 12 microns had been listed as specific causes of some nose and throat cancers. This is what placed wood on the Annual International Report on Cancer's list of 200 odd materials known to cause cancer.

Now ALL dust has been associated not just with sion-nasal and throat cancers and respiratory diseases but with cardio vascular diseases including strokes and heart attacks. It is estimated that around 5 million people a year die prematurely from over exposure to sub 2.5 micron dust.

No longer may you always consider the only time you are exposed to dangerous dust is when wood working - wood dust is now a "top up dust" over and above what you intake elsewhere. If you live on the west coast of Tassie away from mine sites your non wood dust intake will indeed be small, but if you live near major traffic and a mine site or major construction site then even a smaller amount of wood dust may be significant.

The other factor is age. The older and younger you are, the more susceptible you will be to the effects of ANY dust, so greater effort is needed to protect wood workers in these age ranges.

And remember this chart.
The latest study would place all of these WW operations in the at risk category irrespective of age.
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