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The dry cleaning industry is a primary consumer of a toxic chemical researchers suspect may be causing mental illness.
The industrial solvent used in the majority of American dry cleaners has always been risky business. Perchloroethylene is suspected of causing cancer, kidney and liver damage, and nervous system problems and, given its widespread use?more than 500 million pounds are produced in the U.S. each year?it often crops up in municipal water supplies, dumped not just by dry cleaners, but also by metal workers, auto garages, and chemical and electronics manufacturers. So, you're still exposed even if you've long since ditched dry cleaning.
Now there's more reason to be concerned. Researchers from Boston University have linked the chemical to bipolar disorder and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), even at levels that are considered "safe" by U.S. regulatory agencies.
Researchers at Boston University analyzed 11 years' worth of data on 1,512 people who were born on Cape Cod, Massachusetts, an area that suffered a great deal of perchloroethylene (also called "perc") pollution during the '60s and '70s as a result of its use of a certain type of adhesive in the city's drinking-water-supply pipes. The study looked at 1,512 adults, 831 of whom had been exposed to the chemical via drinking water while in the womb or during early childhood; all of them filled out questionnaires relating to their mental health, as well as other factors that could influence mental illnesses, such as family history or occupation.
Regardless of those other factors, exposure to perc in any amount was related to an 80 percent increase in risk of bipolar disorder and a 50 percent increase in risk of PTSD. The chemical was also associated with an increased risk for developing schizophrenia, and even though just four adults in the entire group developed the condition?too small a number to draw any meaningful conclusions?the authors thought it was interesting that three of the four were exposed to perc. In addition, previous studies have linked the chemical to increased anxiety levels and depression in adults.
Ann Aschengrau, ScD, professor and associate chair of the department of epidemiology at the Boston University School of Public Health, says it isn't really clear what role perc is playing in the development of mental illnesses. "We suspect that this would work in some way to make you more susceptible to other things that happen in your life," she says. "Say, for PTSD, in order to develop it, you still have to have a traumatic episode, but not everyone who has a traumatic episode develops PTSD. Maybe this makes you more susceptible to it."
What she found concerning as well were the levels of perc associated with mental illness. Aschengrau found that, though most of the people with mental illness had been exposed to perc at extremely high levels, some were exposed to levels as low as 1.5 parts per billion. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has set a "maximum contaminant level" of 5.0 parts per billion, the level at which municipal water supplies are required to take extra steps to get the chemical out of water, and a non-enforceable "human health water quality" limit of 0.69 parts per billion. According to a 2009 study by the Environmental Working Group, 27 municipal water suppliers tested positive for perc at levels above the legal limit of 5.0 parts per billion, and 40 were above the EPA's human health recommendation.
It's unlikely that you'd be exposed to perc at such dangerous levels just by dry-cleaning your clothes, says Aschengrau. However, supporting dry cleaners supports the use of this toxic chemical. And because most dry cleaners are small, independently owned businesses, there are no legal requirements that they report releases of perc, whether by air or water. "I like to use Woolite, myself," she adds.
It's easy to clean "dry-clean only" clothes at home. Here are a few recipes:
? Wool. Hand-wash gently with a mild soap in 100?F water. Throw a little distilled white vinegar in the water when you rinse, and then lay the garment flat and stretch it to its original size to dry. Always keep wool out of the sun when drying. You can wash cashmere, alpaca, angora, or mohair using the same method.
? Rayon. Hand-wash in cool water with soap or detergent and rinse. Don't twist or wring out the water; press it out of the garment after rinsing by rolling the garment in a towel.
? Silk. Use your hands to swirl silk around in 100?F to 120?F water with some gentle castile soap. Hang indoors to dry because UV rays can damage silk. Instead of ironing on low, hang the article in a steamy bathroom to get out any wrinkles.
In addition to ditching dry cleaning, there are a few other ways to keep perc out of your home and water:
? Buy a decent water filter. Carbon and charcoal filters that have been certified to remove volatile organic compounds, or VOCs, will most likely remove perc, provided they have been certified by NSF International, an independent body that tests water-filter performance. Look for filters that bear the "NSF Certified" seal and make sure the list of chemicals the filter is certified to remove includes VOCs.
? Spot-clean your carpets and upholstery. Like dry cleaners, carpet cleaners use perc to get stains out of your carpets. Opt for a steam cleaner you can rent?you may find it does a better job. Perc residues from dry-cleaned carpets linger on the fibers and actually attract more dirt, making your carpets look dingy.
? Clean your car with vinegar. Perc is also a common ingredient in automobile-cleaning products, thanks to its ability to cut through grease. If you want to detail your car without the cancer-causers, follow our Nickel Pincher's car-washing tips.
Rodale
The industrial solvent used in the majority of American dry cleaners has always been risky business. Perchloroethylene is suspected of causing cancer, kidney and liver damage, and nervous system problems and, given its widespread use?more than 500 million pounds are produced in the U.S. each year?it often crops up in municipal water supplies, dumped not just by dry cleaners, but also by metal workers, auto garages, and chemical and electronics manufacturers. So, you're still exposed even if you've long since ditched dry cleaning.
Now there's more reason to be concerned. Researchers from Boston University have linked the chemical to bipolar disorder and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), even at levels that are considered "safe" by U.S. regulatory agencies.
Researchers at Boston University analyzed 11 years' worth of data on 1,512 people who were born on Cape Cod, Massachusetts, an area that suffered a great deal of perchloroethylene (also called "perc") pollution during the '60s and '70s as a result of its use of a certain type of adhesive in the city's drinking-water-supply pipes. The study looked at 1,512 adults, 831 of whom had been exposed to the chemical via drinking water while in the womb or during early childhood; all of them filled out questionnaires relating to their mental health, as well as other factors that could influence mental illnesses, such as family history or occupation.
Regardless of those other factors, exposure to perc in any amount was related to an 80 percent increase in risk of bipolar disorder and a 50 percent increase in risk of PTSD. The chemical was also associated with an increased risk for developing schizophrenia, and even though just four adults in the entire group developed the condition?too small a number to draw any meaningful conclusions?the authors thought it was interesting that three of the four were exposed to perc. In addition, previous studies have linked the chemical to increased anxiety levels and depression in adults.
Ann Aschengrau, ScD, professor and associate chair of the department of epidemiology at the Boston University School of Public Health, says it isn't really clear what role perc is playing in the development of mental illnesses. "We suspect that this would work in some way to make you more susceptible to other things that happen in your life," she says. "Say, for PTSD, in order to develop it, you still have to have a traumatic episode, but not everyone who has a traumatic episode develops PTSD. Maybe this makes you more susceptible to it."
What she found concerning as well were the levels of perc associated with mental illness. Aschengrau found that, though most of the people with mental illness had been exposed to perc at extremely high levels, some were exposed to levels as low as 1.5 parts per billion. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has set a "maximum contaminant level" of 5.0 parts per billion, the level at which municipal water supplies are required to take extra steps to get the chemical out of water, and a non-enforceable "human health water quality" limit of 0.69 parts per billion. According to a 2009 study by the Environmental Working Group, 27 municipal water suppliers tested positive for perc at levels above the legal limit of 5.0 parts per billion, and 40 were above the EPA's human health recommendation.
It's unlikely that you'd be exposed to perc at such dangerous levels just by dry-cleaning your clothes, says Aschengrau. However, supporting dry cleaners supports the use of this toxic chemical. And because most dry cleaners are small, independently owned businesses, there are no legal requirements that they report releases of perc, whether by air or water. "I like to use Woolite, myself," she adds.
It's easy to clean "dry-clean only" clothes at home. Here are a few recipes:
? Wool. Hand-wash gently with a mild soap in 100?F water. Throw a little distilled white vinegar in the water when you rinse, and then lay the garment flat and stretch it to its original size to dry. Always keep wool out of the sun when drying. You can wash cashmere, alpaca, angora, or mohair using the same method.
? Rayon. Hand-wash in cool water with soap or detergent and rinse. Don't twist or wring out the water; press it out of the garment after rinsing by rolling the garment in a towel.
? Silk. Use your hands to swirl silk around in 100?F to 120?F water with some gentle castile soap. Hang indoors to dry because UV rays can damage silk. Instead of ironing on low, hang the article in a steamy bathroom to get out any wrinkles.
In addition to ditching dry cleaning, there are a few other ways to keep perc out of your home and water:
? Buy a decent water filter. Carbon and charcoal filters that have been certified to remove volatile organic compounds, or VOCs, will most likely remove perc, provided they have been certified by NSF International, an independent body that tests water-filter performance. Look for filters that bear the "NSF Certified" seal and make sure the list of chemicals the filter is certified to remove includes VOCs.
? Spot-clean your carpets and upholstery. Like dry cleaners, carpet cleaners use perc to get stains out of your carpets. Opt for a steam cleaner you can rent?you may find it does a better job. Perc residues from dry-cleaned carpets linger on the fibers and actually attract more dirt, making your carpets look dingy.
? Clean your car with vinegar. Perc is also a common ingredient in automobile-cleaning products, thanks to its ability to cut through grease. If you want to detail your car without the cancer-causers, follow our Nickel Pincher's car-washing tips.
Rodale
