Paint Chemicals 'May Harm Sperm'
Article Taken from BBC Website
Men regularly exposed to chemicals found in paint may be more prone to fertility problems, research suggests. Men such as painters and decorators, who work with glycol solvents, are two-and-a-half times more likely to produce fewer "normal" sperm. The UK study looked at more than 2,000 men attending 14 fertility clinics. However, the Occupational and Environment Medicine study found a wide range of other chemicals had no impact on fertility.
"Infertile men are often concerned about whether chemicals they are exposed to in the workplace are harming their fertility" - Dr Allan Pacey Sheffield University
Sperm motility - the amount of movement of individual sperm - is an important factor in overall fertility. There had been fears that exposure to a wide variety of workplace chemicals might affect a man's ability to father a child. The joint research project between the Universities of Manchester and Sheffield looked at two groups of men attending fertility clinics - those with sperm motility problems, and those without them. The men were questioned about their jobs, lifestyles, and potential exposure to chemicals, revealing a 250% increase in risk of sperm motility problems among those exposed to glycol ethers. These chemicals are widely used as solvents in water-based paints. This risk was present even after other lifestyle factors, such as smoking, wearing tight underpants, testicular surgery and manual work, were taken into consideration.
Reassuring
Dr Andy Povey, from the University of Manchester, said: "We know that certain glycol ethers can affect male fertility and the use of these has reduced over the past two decades."
"However, our work suggests they are still a workplace hazard and further work is needed to reduce such exposure."
However, this was the only chemical linked to fertility problems in men, and Dr Allan Pacey, a fertility specialist from Sheffield University, said that this would ease men's worries.
"Infertile men are often concerned about whether chemicals they are exposed to in the workplace are harming their fertility."
"Therefore it is reassuring to know that on the whole, the risk seems to be quite low."
Paint it Green - An article about me
It’s not easy being green, or even blue or magnolia, if you care about the environment. Many of us spend time at the bottle-bank, reusing carrier bags and composting every vegetable peeling we can lay our hands on. But what about when we decorate our houses?
Enter Peter Padun, eco-decorator (a bit like eco-warrior but with a roller and brush) and champion of chemical-free paint. Peter is an experienced decorator who has now rid his brushes of foul- smelling emulsion and headache- inducing gloss paints. These are put aside in favour of natural paints that
allow him, you, and your home to breathe.
“There’s virtually no smell and these products have a more natural, less plastic-looking finish as well as being better for your health. I feel better when using them because the paint smells fresher than others I have used,” Peter explained.
“In particular, I used to find that when a customer started cooking while I was painting, the combination of the paint fumes and cooking smells would make me feel quite ill. Now I don’t get that clash of smells anymore,” he said.
“There are different sorts of eco- paints available. It’s a bit like having a vegetarian version and a vegan version; there are some that are more natural than others, but these are more
expensive,” he said.
These paints obtain their colour from natural materials such as earth and mineral pigments,
ground up rock and use no chemical dyes. It’s also important to use compatible thinning solutions and other products with eco-paints.
I took the ‘sniff’ test with some of Peter’s paints. I tried a standard petrochemical version, followed by two different natural products. The smell became progressively more pleasant and substantially weaker as I sniffed each one. “If I paint your house, the only thing you’ll smell is my deodorant,” Peter joked.
Lynn Jaremczenko of Mapperley asked Peter to decorate her stairs and landing around a year ago and is thrilled with the results. “Peter was recommended to me and the more I learned about the paints, the more impressed I was. When I came home in the evening there was no smell from Peter’s painting during the day. The paints dry so quickly that I didn’t have to worry about wet paint either,” Lynn said.
She is completely converted to this way of decorating and has even done a little eco-painting herself since. “The gloss equivalent paint washed out with water so it was very easy. The white I used has stayed white. A year on it is still a beautiful, clean white and it’s very durable. You can wipe it down like ordinary gloss paint despite the fact that it looks like emulsion and has a matt finish. I would definitely use it again,” she said.
Although the paint itself was more expensive, Lynn stills thinks it was worth it, simply for the convenience of not having the smell or the hazard of wet paint.
Samantha Ravenall chose Peter and his eco-paints when she decided to decorate her bedroom. “I’ve had a problem with chemical-based paints for years and have reacted to them quite badly in the past. I am interested in recycling and composting and try to make the effort to protect the environment. The colours of these paints look lovely and there was no nasty chemical smell afterwards,” she said.
In addition to lecturing at New College Nottingham, Peter is offering an advisory service to DIY enthusiasts who prefer to tackle their walls themselves. You can book Peter for a couple of hours to come and visit your home, show you the types of eco-paints available and even give you a demonstration of how to use them. He will help you to choose the right type of paint for your purpose and budget and set you on your way to eco-decorating your own home.
Eco-paints can not only make your home look great but you can also enjoy knowing that the results have been achieved with care for the environment and health in mind. “Some of the paints can be composted as well, so I really think they are the way forward,” said Peter.