CPSC, Ban All Toxic Candle Components!
- by: Susan V
- recipient: US Food and Drug Administration, United Kingdom
The thought of taking a nice relaxing bubble bath, enhanced by the glow and scent of candles is so appealing it’s hard to believe there could be a downside. Unfortunately there is - but there doesn’t have to be.
Although the main concern for many years was lead used to stiffen wicks, now the predominant sources of pollution seem to be soot and scents. Most scented candles sold on today’s market contain ingredients that poison the environment and are particularly poisonous when burned.
A new report by the BBC says Professor Alastair Lewis, from the National Centre for Atmospheric Science at the University of York, found one ingredient used in scented products particularly problematic - one often used in even so-called “natural” health and beauty products - limonene.
The BBC report says that Lewis found limonene levels so high in some of the houses he tested that the sensitivity of the monitors had to be adjusted. A Conservative Post report says limonene is a common ingredient in candles that “actually transforms into the poisonous gas formaldehyde when burned, and BBC adds that formaldehyde has been classified as a known human carcinogen since 2011.
None of these health risks are necessary. We can still have our candles and breathe clean air too, but we need FDA (which "regulates" perfumes) and the Consumer Products Safety Commission to ban all toxic ingredients - and those that become toxic when heated - from candles sold in the U.S. including secret, proprietary components of synthetic fragrances. Sign this petition to insist that only safe candles be sold in the US with a special label certifying them as completely nontoxic.
To the Consumer Products Safety Commission and Federal Food and Drug Administration:
The EPA has known at least since 2001, when it issued a report (see: http://nepis.epa.gov/Adobe/PDF/P1009BZL.pdf) on candles and incense, of their potential for polluting indoor air environments. According to that report,“When candles are burned, they emit trace amounts of organic chemicals, including acetaldehyde, formaldehyde, acrolein, and naphthalene» The report also says dioxin can be a byproduct of candle burning
The Consumer Product Safety Commission took care of one serious health hazard caused by burning candles when it banned the use of lead wicks in 2003. However it took this commission far too long to do so, relying on the industry to self-regulate for years after this serious risk of lead poisoning was recognized
Now the predominant sources of pollution seem to be soot and scents.
CPSC notes in its 2003 press release on the banning of lead wicks the following:
"Over the past 30 years, CPSC has been at the forefront of protecting the nation's children from the hazards associated with lead," said CPSC Chairman Hal Stratton. "The ban of lead-cored candlewicks should give parents with young children peace of mind that the burning of votive, pillar or container candles will not emit a dangerous toxin."
How CPSC could make a statement like this in 2003 after what EPA revealed in 2001 is perplexing. The statement is even more so now that we learn of Lewis’ report of how prevalent the use of limonene is in scented products like candles, and the intensified risk of formaldehdye exposure when candles are burned indoors.
Furthermore, there seems to be no effort to address the different levels of soot released by one candle versus another. In 2001 EPA noted that “One type of candle can produce as much as 100 times more soot than another type," and “The type of soot may also vary; though primarily composed of elemental carbon, candle soot may include phthalates, lead, and volatiles such as benzene and toluene," all of which are not good to be inhaling, especially indoors.
However has CPSC done anything to ban candles that create high amounts of soot when burned? And what is the FDA doing to ensure that allowing perfume manufactueres to keep ingredients hidden from the public, under so-called trade secret protections, is not interfering with protecting the public.
None of these health risks are necessary. Candles can be made with completely safe ingredients that are also safe when burned.
Therefore we, the undersigned, insist that our regulatory agencies ban all toxic ingredients used as either components of candles or the scents added to them, including those that become health hazards when the candles are burned.
Thanks for your time.
By signing, you accept Care2's Terms of Service.
You can unsub at any time here.
Having problems signing this? Let us know.