Take a look behind the labels: cleaning products, air fresheners and other materials

• Did you know? Europeans spend up to 90% of their time indoors, most of which at home; this proportion is even higher for particularly vulnerable groups, such as newborns, the elderly, the disabled or the sick. It is therefore essential to have healthy indoor air and to select non-harmful products. But, how can I choose them? You should know that reading the label carefully is far from being enough!

• We spend on average more than 3 hours per day doing household chores, such as cooking and cleaning. This is not surprising, as around 90% of people greatly value having a clean house.

  As a direct consequence, we are constantly in contact with all kinds of materials and cleaning products. Most people pay attention to product’s label to know its risks,, but... do you know what might be hidden under the label?

  Material-related emissions

  Cleaning products,air fresheners and other materials can emit chemical substances into the air (Volatile Organic Compounds), some of which can seriously damage your health (sometimes irreversibly!): headaches, fatigue, vertigo, itching, nausea, respiratory or heart diseases…

  Cleaning products can be composed of different chemical substances: synthetic perfumes, acrolein, formaldehyde, limonene, alcohol... Some of themcarcinogenic, teratogenic, allergenic or endocrine disruptors.

  Hence the critical importance of airing your home, following the manufacturer's instructions and, above all, staying well informed about the risks of using certain products at home.

  Labels lack information!

  Each country imposes its own restrictions on the composition and emissions of chemicals. According to the European Union regulation on Classification, Labelling and Packaging of Chemicals (CLP), cleaning products must inform the consumer of the health hazards ensuing its use.However, neither the degree of risk nor the emissions into the air are specified. Moreover, although more than 80% of citizens read the packaging to know the potential risks of the products, only 35% correctly understand the symbols warning of a health risk.

  Furthermore, the label often fails to mention the pollutants that may result from the degradation or mutation of the various materials found in our homes.

  As outlined in the PEPS report of the ADEME (French Agency for Ecological Transition), "although the information provided by the manufacturers [...] allows a first approach of the nature of the substances potentially emitted during their use, it is still insufficient to predict the resulting volatile emissions".*

  Indeed, without laboratory analyses, it is impossible to know all the emissions a product can generate. A product containing just a few substances listed on the label may emit a hundred more!

  What can I do?

  As a consumer: choose the right label.

  Read the packaging carefully and prioritise products offering clear and comprehensive information. The "Air Label Score" certification is based on the strictest standards to ensure the best information on the emissions of products into indoor air with a clear rating, understandable at first glance.

  As amanufacturer: test your products to ensure that they are safe for the consumer’s health.

  Know the real emissions of your product."Air Label Score" make independent, accredited laboratories carry out analyses to identify and quantify all the substances emitted, and thus detects all released substances and let you optimise your product. With a fast, simple procedure, you can respond to a growing consumers’ concern, simplify their purchasing decisions and differentiate yourself, among many other advantages.

• Sources: European Collaborative Action – Urban Air, Indoor Environment and Human Exposure, Eurostat, Karcher International Study – Everyone likes it clean, US National Library of Medicine – Indoor Air Pollution, Related Human Diseases [...], Special Eurobarometer 360 – ADEME 2021 Report “Volatile and particulate compounds emitted by non-combustible deodorants” *(Own translation)