Be careful what you paint with! There is a view that water based paints are
safer than solvent based paints. For environmental safety this may be
correct, but water based paints contain their own hazards, one of these
being that they usually contain a preservative to prevent spoilage.
In the latest copy of Contact Dermatitis there is a report from Denmark of a
case of a lady who was to occupy an apartment previously occupied by people
who smoked. To remove the smell and cover the discolouration of the paint in
the apartment the walls were painted four times with different types of
sealing paint. Within 2 days of moving back into the apartment she suffered
both respiratory and facial problems. When referred to a dermatologist who
patch tested her she was positive to methylisothiazolinone. The paint
supplier confirmed that this was used as a preservative in the water based
paint.
She had to be moved to a new apartment. When she went back to the old
apartment to collect some personal effects she suffered a repeat reaction.
She also reacted when her furniture was moved from the old apartment to her
new one and is unable to stay in newly painted places without a flare-up of
her condition. She also reacted with facial eczema following a visit to a
hairdresser.
In an earlier study it was found that a combination of
Methylchoroisothiazolinone/Methylisothiazolinone (MCI/MI) was still being
released from a painted surface in a significant amount 240 hours (10 days!)
after the surface had been painted. In Denmark MCI/MI is the most common
cause of occupational dermatitis in painters.
This raises an interesting issue. When next in a supermarket, check how many
products (include cosmetics) contain MCI/MI as a preservative. You might be
surprised! In the same issue of Contact Dermatitis several well known
dermatologists have reviewed the use of MI in consumer products and
concluded that present use concentrations are too high.
So 'substitution' as recommended by authorities (e.g. HSE) has to be done
with care to ensure that you do not "jump out of the frying pan into the
fire"!
Chris
Chris Packham
FRSPH, FIIRSM, FInstSMM, MCMI, RSP, MBICSc
EnviroDerm Services
Unit 10, Building 11, The Mews, Mitcheldean, GL17 0SN
Tel: 01386 832 311
Mobile: 07818 035 898
www.enviroderm.co.uk
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