The Chemical Cocktail

Being green is not only about the environment - it's about our health

There are currently 30,000 man-made chemicals traded in the EU and many are used in consumer products. Many conventional paints, varnishes and glues contain man-made chemicals which are VOCs.

Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) are organic chemicals that have a high vapour pressure at ordinary room temperature. Their high vapor pressure results from a low boiling point, which causes large numbers of molecules to evaporate or sublimate from the liquid or solid form of the compound and enter the surrounding air.

Harmful VOCs typically are not acutely toxic, but have compounding long-term health effects. Because the concentrations are usually low and the symptoms slow to develop, research into VOCs and their effects is difficult.

Also there are big concerns about the ‘chemical cocktail’ we are awash with - individually, each chemical may be harmless in a minute quantity, but we cannot predict the combined effect. That’s why only a small percentage of chemicals used in consumer products have been adequately tested for safety.