The Poisons and Allergens That Make up Household Dust

[Kadie]

The Poisons and Allergens That Make up Household Dust
By JEFFREY KLUGER Jeffrey Kluger – Tue Feb 23, 12:20 pm ET

It's hard to get too worked up about dust. Yes, it's a nuisance, but it's hardly one that causes us much anxiety - and our language itself suggests as much. We call those clumps of the stuff under the bed dust bunnies, after all, not, say, dust vermin.

But there's a higher ick factor to dust than you might think. And there's a science to how it gets around - a science that David Layton and Paloma Beamer, professors of environmental policy at the University of Arizona, are exploring. (See the top 10 scientific discoveries of 2009.)

Layton and Beamer, whose latest study has been accepted for autumn publication in the journal Environmental Science & Technology, knew a lot about their subject even before they set to work. Historically, everyone from chemists to homemakers has tried to figure out just what dust is made of, and the Arizona researchers drew their preliminary data mostly from two studies of household dust conducted in the Netherlands and the U.S. The American survey in particular was a big one, covering six Midwestern states. Layton and Beamer also included a localized study in Sacramento, Calif., that focused particularly on lead contamination. What all those surveys showed was decidedly unappetizing.

The specific dust mix in any household differs according to climate, age of the house and the number of people who live in it - not to mention the occupants' cooking, cleaning and smoking habits. But nearly everywhere, dust consists of some combination of shed bits of human skin, animal fur, decomposing insects, food debris, lint and organic fibers from clothes, bedding and other fabrics, tracked-in soil, soot, particulate matter from smoking and cooking, and, disturbingly, lead, arsenic and even DDT. (Comment on this story)

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There's not much to fret about in simple particles of dirt or organic materials such as pollen (although they can trigger allergies), but lead, arsenic and DDT can be a more serious matter. About one-third of the arsenic in the atmosphere comes from natural sources - volcanoes principally. The rest comes from mining, smelting, burning fossil fuels and other industrial processes. Even in relatively low concentrations, arsenic is not without risk, especially to small children who play on the floor and routinely transfer things from their hands to their mouths. The same is true for lead, which comes less from wall paint - the source most people would expect - than from auto exhaust, smelting and soil deposits. "Lead loading on floors is a key determinant of blood-lead levels in children," Layton and Beamer wrote in their paper. (See "The Year in Health 2009: From A to Z.")

The fact that DDT is still in house dust is a surprise to most people, since the pesticide was banned in the U.S. in 1972. But a house is a little like a living organism: once it absorbs a contaminant, it may never purge it completely. "Dust in our homes," says Beamer, "especially deep dust in our carpets and furniture, is a conglomerate of substances over the life of the home and can provide a historical record of chemicals that have entered it."

more...
http://news.yahoo.com/s/time/20100223/hl_time/08599196687000

[Zoeisright]

1. We are slowly poisoning ourselves.

However, I think that using sprays to dust is just adding to the problem. A damp cloth does just fine at removing dust.

[Lost4words]

2. wealthy Romans had wine flowing through lead pipes in their homes! nt

[trotsky]

4. Yeah, and they could expect to live to the ripe old age of 30.

Ah, the good old days.

[NoNothing]

3. We are also panicking ourselves silly

Getting neurotic about dust of all things.

Your local fear merchants, hard at work.