The use of fragrances and perfumes is almost a part of the normal daily living of humans with different products coming with varying flavours, sizes and shapes.

They are designed to add a ?pleasant? scent to the air (food smells in shopping malls and floral scents in stores), cover up poor air quality and insufficient fresh air ventilation (odours, cigarette smoke, exhaust, pesticides, mould, and chemicals outgassing from furniture, carpet, drywalls, equipment, cleaning products, etc.

 Fragrances are volatile compounds and are constantly released into the air. The widespread use and vast number of fragranced products cause extensive indoor and outdoor pollution. Many people find it difficult to enter public buildings, attend public events, stand near people or walk outdoors due to fragrances present in the air.

The use of Misleading ?brainwashing? advertising words such as: floral, natural flavour, hypoallergenic, natural scent and the name of flowers make you think the product is safe to use when it may not be. Some unscented and fragrance free products contain masking fragrance to cover up the smell of other ingredients.

Despite the widespread, constant exposure to fragrance chemicals, including the unknown number of them in thousands of products, there is minimal government regulation and monitoring on their safety.

Fragrance manufacture is a boom industry and one which is still on the increase. Thousands of tons of synthetic fragrance are produced each year but with very few legislative restrictions are imposed.

Trade secret laws keep toxicity testing and identification of fragrance ingredients from being accurately and truthfully disclosed to anyone.

A Norwegian study found synthetic musk fragrance compounds in outdoor air, even in a remote area. Fragrances are dispensed through ventilation systems and individual units in many public areas, including airplanes and buildings (offices, restaurants, hotels, airports, hospitals, nursing homes, etc.

Every year more and more commonly used chemicals are found to be hormone disrupters, and it is presently unknown what percentage of the hundreds of fragrance chemicals has these properties. Fragrances often contain large amounts of phthalates, a group of toxic chemicals that are known oestrogen and testosterone hormone disrupters. Phthalates are used to impart an oily moisturizing film to help dissolve and fix other ingredients in fragrances.

Adult humans are reported to absorb up to 60% of products directly applied to the skin. Toxins in perfumes and other body products absorbed through our skin typically end up in our bloodstream and are transported to our organs.

Some even suggest that synthetic fragrance has more in common with diesel fumes than natural scent. This is because they are showing all the tell-tale signs of persistent organic pollutants they are volatile compounds, produced in enormous numbers, which bio-accumulate, do not readily break down in the environment, and are being found stored in the fat of animals – including that of humans.

Many of them are hormone-disrupters, carcinogens, and cause harm to the aquatic environment, where they are found in increasing numbers.

There is wide cause for concern as to the health of those who use them. Studies have shown that the synthetic fragrance chemicals are being found in breast milk, with one comparison study measuring levels as having increased five fold in the last ten years alone.

Up to 100 chemicals may be used in an average perfume, most of which are petro-chemicals i.e. derivatives of the petroleum industry with many suspected to be harmful. In 2004, Pat Thomas from the ?Ecologist? magazine analysed a typical and well-selling fragrance product, listing the ingredients and possible effects of the chemicals used.

In conclusion, a variety of fragrance-free products are available in the market place just make the effort and read the labels carefully. If you cannot pronounce the ingredients, don?t buy it. People have power and can force manufacturers to change and offer fragrance free products.

REFERENCES.

http://www.positivehealth.com/article/environmental/fragrance-a-growing-health-and-environmental-hazard

http://lauratrotta.com/the-health-and-environmental-impacts-of-wearing-perfume/

http://www.care2.com/greenliving/toxic-effects-of-perfume.html

http://www.pollutionissues.co.uk/synthetic-fragrances-environment.html

http://healthimpactnews.com/2013/is-your-perfume-poison/